Left to right: Mandi Rub, RN, Annie Nguyen, MD, Theodore, Andy Nguyen. Blanket knitted by Rub. (Photo/Courtesy of USC-VHH)

The first baby born in 2024 at USC Verdugo Hills Hospital turned out to be a member of the Keck Medicine of USC family. Ophthalmologist Annie Nguyen, MD, and her husband Andy welcomed their son Theodore into the world at 3:26 a.m. on Jan. 1.

Nguyen treats patients of the USC Roski Eye Institute, specializing in areas such as anterior uveitis, cataract and refractive surgeries, LASIK, corneal transplant, collagen cross-linking and conditions that cause chronic dry eye. She is also an associate program director for the ophthalmology residency program at the Keck School of Medicine of USC.

In keeping with USC-VHH tradition, Nyugen and her family received a gift basket from the Crescenta Valley Chamber of Commerce.

The family also received a handmade baby blanket in white and powder blue from Mandi Rub, RN. For the past three decades, the USC-VHH maternity nurse has knitted a soft, warm blanket for each New Year’s baby and their family as a gesture of congratulations and an offer of extra comfort.

Meanwhile, USC Arcadia Hospital welcomed its own New Year’s baby. At 1:56 a.m., Yian Zhou was born to father Mianzhi Zhou and mother Jing Jie Sun. Yian weighed 6 pounds, 2.3 ounces and was 19.49 inches long.

— Kate Faye