The picture is that of a 21-week-old unborn baby named Samuel Alexander Armas, who is being operated on by the surgeon named Joseph Bruner. The baby was diagnosed with Spina Bifida and would not survive if removed from the mother’s womb.
Little Samuel’s mother, Julie Armas, was an obstetrics nurse in Atlanta. She knew of Dr. Bruner’s remarkable surgical procedure. Practicing at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, he performed these critical and special operations while the baby is still in the womb. During the procedure, the doctor removes the uterus via a C-section and makes a small incision to operate on the baby.
Now, this dates back to 1999. During the surgery on little Samuel, the little guy reached his tiny, but fully developed, hand through the incision and firmly grasped the surgeon’s finger. Dr. Bruner was reported as saying that when his finger was grasped, it was the most emotional moment of his life, and that for a moment during the procedure he just froze, feeling totally immobile. The photograph captures this miraculous event with perfect clarity.
The editors titled the picture, “Hand of Hope.”
It is a graphic reminder that growing in the womb of his or her mother is a baby. It is not a “glob of tissue,” or “a product of conception”. That pre-born baby is a human being with all the emotions, will and personality of any human being. That picture says it in a way that a thousand words cannot.
Little Samuel’s mother said that they wept for days when they saw the picture. She said, “The photo reminds us my pregnancy isn’t about disability or illness, it’s about a little person.” That’s what it’s always been about.
Samuel was born in perfect health and the surgery was a success! Here's a photograph of Samuel from recent years, now in his teens.
And the man behind this miracle, Dr. Joseph P. Bruner.
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