'Hand of Hope' Boy Has Passion for Life by Suzanne Hadley Gosselin on 05/07/2009 at 8:30 AM

Do you remember the famous photograph of the baby reaching out of the womb and grasping the doctor's finger? That baby is now 9-year-old Samuel Armas.

The photo has been spread around the world and even cited during congressional debates on the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act, but for Samuel it has personal significance. According to Fox News:

"When I see that picture, the first thing I think of is how special and lucky I am to have God use me that way," Samuel told FOXNews.com. "I feel very thankful that I was in that picture."

On Aug. 19, 1999, photographer Michael Clancy shot the "Fetal Hand Grasp" — his picture of a 21-week-old fetus grasping a doctor's finger during innovative surgery to correct spina bifida. Nearly four months later, on Dec. 2, Samuel Armas was "born famous."

The photo sparked controversy when the photographer claimed he saw the baby reach out and grab the doctor's finger, while the doctor claimed the baby was too anesthetized to do so.

"I don't care, honestly," Julie Armas [Samuel's mother] said. "What I felt the picture showed is that this is a child engaging in some form of interaction. I'm a labor and delivery nurse, so I understand that Samuel was anesthetized to some degree.

"So if he reached out, I don't know. If Dr. Bruner reached out, I don't know. The fact of the matter is it's a child with a hand, with a life, and that's meaningful enough."

And Samuel is glad to be the "poster child" for life:

Samuel, now 9 and living in Villa Rica, Ga., said the photo likely gave countless "babies their right to live" and forced many others to debate their beliefs on abortion, something he's proud of.

"It's very important to me," Samuel said of the photograph. "A lot of babies would've lost their lives if that didn't happen."

Kids like Samuel and Lia encourage me. Children seem to step up instantly to defend other children. They don't even question it. We can learn something from them.

'Hand of Hope' Boy Has Passion for Life by Suzanne Hadley Gosselin on 05/07/2009 at 8:30 AM

Do you remember the famous photograph of the baby reaching out of the womb and grasping the doctor's finger? That baby is now 9-year-old Samuel Armas.

The photo has been spread around the world and even cited during congressional debates on the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act, but for Samuel it has personal significance. According to Fox News:

"When I see that picture, the first thing I think of is how special and lucky I am to have God use me that way," Samuel told FOXNews.com. "I feel very thankful that I was in that picture."

On Aug. 19, 1999, photographer Michael Clancy shot the "Fetal Hand Grasp" — his picture of a 21-week-old fetus grasping a doctor's finger during innovative surgery to correct spina bifida. Nearly four months later, on Dec. 2, Samuel Armas was "born famous."

The photo sparked controversy when the photographer claimed he saw the baby reach out and grab the doctor's finger, while the doctor claimed the baby was too anesthetized to do so.

"I don't care, honestly," Julie Armas [Samuel's mother] said. "What I felt the picture showed is that this is a child engaging in some form of interaction. I'm a labor and delivery nurse, so I understand that Samuel was anesthetized to some degree.

"So if he reached out, I don't know. If Dr. Bruner reached out, I don't know. The fact of the matter is it's a child with a hand, with a life, and that's meaningful enough."

And Samuel is glad to be the "poster child" for life:

Samuel, now 9 and living in Villa Rica, Ga., said the photo likely gave countless "babies their right to live" and forced many others to debate their beliefs on abortion, something he's proud of.

"It's very important to me," Samuel said of the photograph. "A lot of babies would've lost their lives if that didn't happen."

Kids like Samuel and Lia encourage me. Children seem to step up instantly to defend other children. They don't even question it. We can learn something from them.

Comments

[1. BDB said the following at 12:05 AM on May 9:]

1

I'm not sure why there's no other comments. But I remember talking with neonatal nurses about how they could routinely save 20 and 21-week babies now. Which means that a "fetus" can be a "viable baby" after five months of pregnancy.

About the time his first picture was taken.

[2. Leah said the following at 4:53 AM on May 10:]

2

Does it matter if the baby actually reached out or not? The point of the photo was that there was an actual human being inside the woman, not just a "foetus". That point is made, anaesthetised or not.

[3. Nick Jesch said the following at 10:22 AM on May 10:]

3

I well remember that image when it was first published. I shook my head in disbelief then.. not at the image and the truth it portrays, but that some, even medical "professionals" had such a problem with it. But then, when one considers how "science" maintains we are the product of random mutations over time, it makes sense. Ultrasound images clearly show a beating heart and a fully formed boty.. at ten weeks, about two inches long. And this infuriates that lot who insist that "it" (the young child in the womb) is a "blob of tissue" and therefore unworthy of the respect due themselves... who, if this is true, are merely hundred fifty pound blobs of tissue.
Ah, but WE KNOW our God has created these things in His image, and nothing these professionals can say or do will ever change that. Which is why I love images, and stories, such as this one. It gives the lie to those in the "blob of tissue" camp and begs the question: "on what scientific basis rests your claim of insignificance? And at what point does this change?" They cannot agree on "at what point", some declaring that, even once given to the light of day, a child is not a child until "it" is wanted. What they fail to accept is that, given the opportunity, someone somewhere DOES want that child, even before birth.
It is heartening to see Samuel's "take" on his fame, and how he is "enjoying" it. That young man values life.. starting with his own.

[4. Joy said the following at 8:00 PM on May 11:]

4

I posted the photo in my cubicle and it made my supervisor so uncomfortable she insisted that I take it down.

[1. BDB said the following at 12:05 AM on May 9:]

1

I'm not sure why there's no other comments. But I remember talking with neonatal nurses about how they could routinely save 20 and 21-week babies now. Which means that a "fetus" can be a "viable baby" after five months of pregnancy.

About the time his first picture was taken.

[2. Leah said the following at 4:53 AM on May 10:]

2

Does it matter if the baby actually reached out or not? The point of the photo was that there was an actual human being inside the woman, not just a "foetus". That point is made, anaesthetised or not.

[3. Nick Jesch said the following at 10:22 AM on May 10:]

3

I well remember that image when it was first published. I shook my head in disbelief then.. not at the image and the truth it portrays, but that some, even medical "professionals" had such a problem with it. But then, when one considers how "science" maintains we are the product of random mutations over time, it makes sense. Ultrasound images clearly show a beating heart and a fully formed boty.. at ten weeks, about two inches long. And this infuriates that lot who insist that "it" (the young child in the womb) is a "blob of tissue" and therefore unworthy of the respect due themselves... who, if this is true, are merely hundred fifty pound blobs of tissue.
Ah, but WE KNOW our God has created these things in His image, and nothing these professionals can say or do will ever change that. Which is why I love images, and stories, such as this one. It gives the lie to those in the "blob of tissue" camp and begs the question: "on what scientific basis rests your claim of insignificance? And at what point does this change?" They cannot agree on "at what point", some declaring that, even once given to the light of day, a child is not a child until "it" is wanted. What they fail to accept is that, given the opportunity, someone somewhere DOES want that child, even before birth.
It is heartening to see Samuel's "take" on his fame, and how he is "enjoying" it. That young man values life.. starting with his own.

[4. Joy said the following at 8:00 PM on May 11:]

4

I posted the photo in my cubicle and it made my supervisor so uncomfortable she insisted that I take it down.