Methodist Olive Branch welcomes first baby of 2026
OLIVE BRANCH, Miss. – While much of the Mid-South was still recovering from New Year’s Eve celebrations, the labor and delivery team at Methodist Olive Branch Hospital was already hard at work welcoming the first arrival of 2026.
Aria Anderson earned the distinction of being the first baby reported born in the new year at the facility. She made her grand entrance at 5:27 a.m. on Jan. 1, weighing in at 6 pounds, 10 ounces, and measuring 19 ½ inches long.
The healthy baby girl was born to Tamaria Anderson of Horn Lake.
A Special Welcome
To commemorate the occasion, hospital staff presented the Anderson family with a celebratory wagon. The gift was stocked with newborn essentials—including diapers, blankets, and clothing—to help Aria and her mother during their first few days at home.
The birth marks the first reported delivery of the year for Olive Branch. As of Thursday morning, Baptist Memorial Hospital-DeSoto in Southaven had not yet announced its first birth of 2026.
