Ovena Braithwaite early Monday morning gave birth to a bouncing baby girl in her newly built Yarrowkabra home.

The godmother of her two other children, Ann Davidson, said she was unable to take the young woman to a hospital as she informed her that she was in labour too late.

“I was taking her to the hospital but I had to take her back upstairs because the baby head was almost out. And by the time I run and get the nurse up the road and come back the baby already come out,” the woman told Stabroek News. She said the nurse was in time to cut the child’s umbilical cord.

The baby girl has been named Candessa and Ann said they would soon be registering the child’s birth. However, she would not share the same last name as her older siblings as their father, Clive Marino is still missing.

Ovena hit hard times when her husband went missing and after the roof of the shack she called home blew off during a storm, she was forced to seek refuge in a neighbour’s home.

Ovena’s husband went missing several months ago after he was taken to the Diamond Diagnostic centre by Davidson after he fell ill. He was reportedly transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital and then just vanished, seemingly into thin air, as there has been no sign of him although hospitals, mortuaries and relatives were checked.

Ovena’s plight was published in the Stabroek News and many public-spirited citizens, local and overseas, responded donating items and sending money for the family. Her new one-bedroom home was built compliments of Mr and Mrs Sattaur Gaffoor and the woman is very grateful to the couple as she now has a proper roof over her head.

The young mother has also expressed gratitude to Linda Keith, Daphne Archer, Lynette Wong, Ann Davidson, the Campbell sisters, the Beharry Group of Companies, Guyana Power & Light and many other persons and organisations who did not want their names mentioned.