SEQUIM — When Olympic Peninsula residents read of the unexpected arrival of baby Dale Michael Clairmore on Feb. 8, they responded with offers for help — baby equipment, gift certificates, and plenty of well wishes.
It was so overwhelming that Michael Clairmore — brother of the new father, Dale Clairmore — took over for the new parents and set up a way for people to help
The new parents — Dale and his wife, Miho Yamaguchi-Clairmore, of Sequim — still have almost nothing for the baby.
“We pretty much need everything, baby-wise,” Dale Clairmore said.
Firefighters from the Port Angeles Fire Department and Clallam County Fire District 3 in Sequim are collecting baby items for the Clairmores at their fire stations.
Those who want to donate can drop off items at the stations, which are located at 102 E. Fifth St. in Port Angeles and 323 N. Fifth Ave. in Sequim.
A donation account has been set up for the couple at Wells Fargo Bank.
“The account number for donations is 1381735107, and can be used at any Wells Fargo in the U.S.,” Dale Clairmore said.
Baby Dale surprised his parents on Feb. 8 with a quick arrival only five days after his mother learned she was pregnant.
He is doing well at home, said his father.
“My son is surrounded by people who love him and are spoiling him,” Dale Clairmore — who unlike his son has no middle name — said last week.
Miho Yamaguchi-Clairmore, 39, had been told that she could not have children.
Because of a stressful year of caring for her ill mother-in-law — who died in December — she did not realize she was pregnant until she entered her eighth month.
Doctors told her to expect to give birth in a few weeks, but only five days later baby Dale was born at Olympic Medical Center in Port Angeles.
“She is exhausted but she is wonderful, too. She’s walking around like she just had a baby,” Dale Clairmore said.
The couple are living with Michael, now.
They had cared for Dale’s mother in Port Townsend for a year before she died at her home a week after Christmas, and they had to move out of her home soon after.
Dale Clairmore said he considers Port Townsend his home, though he is currently living in Sequim and at one point briefly lived in Port Hadlock.
The couple were touched that so many people supported and helped them through the last few weeks, including those at My Choices Pregnancy Center, and those who provided such services as food stamps.
“The list is huge. I want to say, “Thank you, everyone,” Dale Clairmore said.
“Personally, I’d like to thank everyone who has been sending condolences for my mother,” he added.
________
Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-417-3535 or at arwyn.rice@peninsuladailynews.com.
