When a family is expecting a newborn, everyone is thrilled, especially the dads. How much more so when they know that their first son will be joining the family? However, not everybody in the family is overjoyed at each birth. They are occasionally obliged to say goodbye.

Lauren Accurso’s family suffered a similar fate when she died on April 29th, shortly after delivering her son, Matthew Jr.

When she passed away, her husband, Matthew, was left to care for their four children, including the newborn baby Matthew Jr., who was on life support in the NICU. According to a GoFundMe set up for the family, Lauren’s death was caused by a very uncommon medical condition. There was no way of preventing it.

The pastor of the family, Matt McCloghry, told local media that everything was just too abrupt.He stated, “[It was] very sudden, really, just through text message and a phone: Something is happening, and we need to pray. It was really shortly thereafter a group of us went down to the hospital, and we heard the news.”

Because of the trauma, he had to go through when he was born, little Matthew was in a situation of life and death. “People are praying. There are so many people praying. We need to pray and ask God to do a miracle. He can heal this baby. I believe Matthew is going to go home with a clean bill of health,” Pastor McCloghry said in an interview.

Despite all of Baby Matthew’s doctors’ efforts, his body was too weak to keep fighting for life. This was a difficult period for the whole family, especially for his father.

Matt was having trouble breathing, and his heart had stopped beating. His wife, Chynna had to make a heartbreaking choice: She had to remove baby Matt’s life support.

Through his Facebook page, Matt shared a letter to all those who had been supporting him and his family throughout this battle. His post reads:

“I want to start out by letting everyone know how thankful I am for each and every person around the world who has been lifting me, Lauren, my daughters, my son Matthew and the rest of our family up in prayer.“

He stated that, no matter how hard they tried to connect with each of their supporters, the circumstances made it nearly impossible. He claimed that they respond to and see each present and support offered to him and his entire family, adding, that they are “SO honored by all of them.”

He continued, “Today was one of the hardest days of my life. It will forever be etched in my brain. I sat in a room at Wolfsons hospital with 15 highly qualified medical professionals who all care deeply for our son Matthew. Unfortunately, the last thing I ever thought I would have to talk about as a father was now very real and happening.”

Matthew claims that since his newborn son, Matthew had to go without oxygen for such a long period of time, he has suffered significant brain damage. As a result, he experienced a number of serious side effects.

He said, “Over the past few weeks doctors have attempted to wean him off the machines, but sadly the results have not been positive.”

“Upon hearing this news, my first reaction as Matthew’s daddy was to sweep my sweet boy up and carry him as far away from machines, medications, life support, and hospital smell as I could. I wanted to whisk him away to our family condo on the beach and let the healing kisses of his sisters, grandmas, and cousins cleanse his little body of all his infirmities, but as life sometimes does, I was brought back down to the reality that my only son, the sweet boy that my wife so diligently and lovingly carried for 9 months is in a situation that daddy could not fix. The ONLY hope in all of this could only come from his heavenly daddy who placed breathe in Matthews’s lungs from the very beginning.”

“TODAY, I was faced with something no father should ever have to face. The decision to place Matthew on endless life-supporting contraptions and medications or allow God to carry him where He will.“

According to Matthew, some people may regard this as a tragedy. Some might even question God’s presence at the moment. But baby Matthew, who is both brave and damaged, is a genuine wonder for this courageous but broken father.

“My miracle is holding my son for as many precious moments as possible and when the time comes, lifting him up to his mommy so that she can hold him for the first time in paradise.”

It would not be simple for him and the rest of the family to let go and forget this particular moment, but with the aid and encouragement of others around them as well as continued prayers for the Accurso family, they would be able to overcome this adversity that had fallen upon them.