Dad’s life ended as baby’s began

In a soft voice, almost a whisper, Heather Hainline described the face of her baby girl.

“She has his cheeks, his mouth and his chin,” the new mother said. “I don’t know about her eyes yet.”

Looking down at tiny Holly in a neonatal intensive care unit crib, 23-year-old Hainline saw hin

ts of her husband’s sturdy, smiling face.

Holly Hainline was born March 11 at Everett’s Providence Pavilion for Women and Children. She arrived 11 weeks early, weighing just 3 pounds. Her father, Daniel Hainline, was there to welcome her.

“He cut the cord,” Heather Hainline said Wednesday.

Holly will grow up without her dad, who loved to fish and snowboard. Eight days after she was born, her 27-year-old father was killed in a car accident.

As if a premature birth and terrible death aren’t overwhelming enough, Hainline’s story has another heart-rending twist. Her older sister was driving the night of March 19 when her car rolled and Daniel was killed in Rexburg, Idaho.

Heather and Daniel Hainline, who attended Brigham Young University-Idaho in Rexburg, had been recently living in nearby Idaho Falls. When she went into premature labor, Heather was in Snohomish County to visit her family near Arlington and attend a baby shower. Her husband managed to catch a plane and make it to Everett in time for the birth.

His sister-in-law, who was planning a move to Utah, drove Daniel Hainline to Idaho so he could get the couple’s car and their dog. The Hainlines planned to stay here during Holly’s hospitalization. With an original due date of May 26, Holly is expected to be in the hospital well into next month.

A friend was taking care of the couple’s basset hound, Hank, in Rexburg. Daniel was about to pick up the dog when the accident occurred. Heather Hainline now worries not only for baby, but also about her sister.

“I think she has that guilt,” she said.

The sister, 25, is staying with their grandmother in Utah.

According to a March 21 news report on KIFI-TV in Idaho Falls, the Chevy Blazer crashed near the Teton Lakes Golf Course. The report said Hainline and his sister-in-law were wearing seat belts, and alcohol was not believed to have been a factor. Black ice is mentioned in connection with the accident on an online fundraising site. Daniel Hainline’s loved ones launched that effort to help Heather and Holly.

Daniel Hainline was raised in the San Diego area community of Poway, Calif. They were married in 2007 in San Diego.

Heather Hainline is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Her Mormon faith, which was shared by her husband, gives her hope through grief-filled days.

“I believe that our family is together for all eternity. Just knowing that gives me some comfort,” she said.

She agreed to share her story only as a way to thank all the people — friends, loved ones and strangers — who have helped since Holly was born. “I have no idea who some of them are,” she said.

Hainline can’t say enough about the kindness and expertise of doctors and staff at the Providence Pavilion, where Holly has graduated from an incubator to a crib. The baby still has a feeding tube, but on Tuesday night weighed 4 pounds, 9 ounces. She now has good color and chubby cheeks.

“Throughout this whole thing, Heather has been a really strong person,” said Lynsie Ransom, who has known Heather since their school days in Granite Falls. Ransom graduated from Granite Falls High School in 2004 and is friends with Jones’ sister. Heather Jones graduated from Granite Falls High in 2005.

“She has an awesome support system with her family and her closest friends,” said Ransom, who works at The Everett Clinic at Harbour Pointe. Everett Clinic employees have raised more than $2,000 to help Hainline with funeral and other expenses.

On leave from her job as a Wal-Mart manager, Hainline has health insurance — for now. She has rented an apartment in Everett. She’s uncertain about work and her future. Holly comes first.

“I am very proud of her,” said Cari Jones, Heather’s mother, who lives near Arlington. “She is a very strong young woman, and is becoming a wonderful mother.”

When Heather talks about Daniel, it’s clear that Holly will grow up knowing all about her dad.

He studied economics in college. He played golf and could strike up a friendship with most anyone. He had a keen interest in saltwater reef aquariums.

“He didn’t like to sit around,” Hainline said. “He didn’t waste a minute of his life.”

Julie Muhlstein: 425-339-3460; muhlstein@heraldnet.com.

How you can help

Relatives of the late Daniel Hainline have set up an online account to raise money to help his widow Heather Hainline and her infant daughter. Donations may be made at: http://pledgie.com/campaigns/14982.