This doctor makes a special delivery for all the newborns he meets.
It’s not every day that an average, ordinary citizen gets a day named after him. But of course, Dr. Carey Andrew-Jaja is no ordinary man, doctor, or even singer. He’s all of those things combined, plus so much more.
The doctor who sang to over 8,000 newborn babies is now being honored one last time for his beautiful voice.
Earlier this year the city of Pittsburgh declared that May 16 would henceforth be known as “Jaja Day,” in honor of the doctor who sang to thousands of newborns as they first came into the world.
Dr. Andrew-Jaja is famous for singing “Happy Birthday” to almost every baby he’s ever delivered during his 40-year career.
Families who were lucky enough to have this singing doc in their delivery room still affectionately refer to their kiddos as “Jaja babies.” Sadly, his limited edition run on delivering special “Jaja babies” has finally come to a close.
He’s decided to retire from medical practice for good, but he’s not going out as quietly as he had probably hoped. Turns out everyone whose lives he’s touched over the past 4 decades are singing highly of his praises!
In a video for The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, where Dr. Andrew-Jaja spent many years handing out sweet lullaby gifts, the doctor said:
“They’re special. Each of them is an individual. I’ve delivered thousands and thousands of babies. When I’m singing to those babies, I think, ‘I’m singing to a future important person.’ That’s the credit I give to all of them.”
He went on to add that the miracle of life is a wonderful thing to hold in his hands.
“So, to me, it’s a wonderful thing in my hands, the miracle of life. The rest of it is that it’s a beautiful world we live in. You forget about all the crisis going on everywhere for a moment when you see that miracle of life in front of you.”
Dr. Andrew-Jaja first started to sing to newborns when he was a resident. Little did he know that there was another type of residency in store for him!
He took over as the resident singing doctor when a retiring gynecologist, who also sang to the little ones he delivered, inspired him to do the same.
“He has passed on the baton to me. I took it over and I started to sing to my babies ever since then and I do it every time.”
He’s been singing ever since. Classics like “Happy Birthday and Louis Armstrong’s “What a Wonderful Life” were favorites tunes in his repertoire of birthday lullabies.
Linsay Grimes, whose baby girl got an extra-special delivery with Dr. Andrew-Jaja welcoming voice, told Good Morning America that:
“He has the most beautiful voice and, of course, he includes their name and ends the song with ‘Welcome to our beautiful world, Luella,’ which brought me to tears, because it is such a beautiful world.”
Dr. Andrew-Jaja says that celebrating the birth with a sweet song helps him connect with both the baby and their parents.
“There’s a joy when people perform this way to honor the baby, the parents. I’m happy that the city recognized that.”
It’s obvious that Dr. Jaja absolutely loved every wee little patient he helped bring into the world, and it wasn’t just a job for him.
But, now that he’s retiring, he’s looking forward to spending time with his family and has a brand new “job” to look forward to.
“There is a grandchild waiting for me to play with me, to play my beard.”
Of course, there will most likely be lots of singing involved, too.
Check out the video below to hear Dr. Ja Ja’s belt out sweet birthday baby wishes on “Doctor’s Got Talent.”
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