Heartbreaking video shows father singing to ailing newborn days after wife died in childbirth
By RYAN GORMAN
Heartbreaking video posted online shows a California man singing to his ailing newborn son after his wife died during childbirth –- the child died only hours later.
Ashley Picco, 30, died Saturday while undergoing an emergency C-section to try to save the life of newborn Lennon only 24 weeks into her pregnancy. Lennon died four days after he was born.
The video posted to YouTube, by a friend, shows Chris Pico singing the Beatles' "Blackbird" to Lennon while he lies in an incubator at a Loma Linda hospital.
"My wife, best friend and mother of my child passed away," Chris Picco wrote online. "I have a lifetime to grieve this unspeakable loss."
The grieving man brought the guitar to the hospital to sing because deceased wife Ashley would often tell him during the pregnancy she felt Lennon moving while music played, according to the video's description.
Chris Picco played for the boy for several hours. His son died the next day.
Pictures posted online show the loving couple smiling together in the months before Ashley Picco's death.
They also show a devastated Chris Picco cradling his prematurely born son, kissing his toes and holding his hand, making the most of a heart-wrenching situation.
An online fundraiser has been setup to help pay for a joint-memorial service being held for mother and son.
"My little fighter, Lennon James Picco went to sleep in his daddy's arms late last night," Chris Picco wrote on the fundraiser's YouCaring page. "He was dressed in an outfit that Ashley bought for him, with little guitars on it, and wrapped in a blanket made by a dear friend.
"I am so thankful for the four unforgettable days I got to spend with him," Chris Picco continued. "His mommy would have been so beyond joy to see him and to hold him, touch him, bathe him, sing to him - as I have had the privilege of doing."
Ashley and Chris Picco married in 2007 after meeting in New York City while both volunteered at Ground Zero in the months following the 9/11 terror attacks.
She worked as a nurse for two years before her death and often played music together with husband Chris.
A memorial service for both mother and son will be held Saturday, November 15 at 7:30 p.m. local time, in California. It can be viewed online here.
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