MISSION VIEJO – Lance Cpl. Juan Rodriguez missed the birth of his first daughter while he was at boot camp. He was sure he'd miss the birth of his second daughter when he got called to duty in Iraq in February. His wife was seven months pregnant.
But thanks to the efforts of Freedom Calls Foundation — a nonprofit that provides free video conferencing, telephone and Internet services to troops in Iraq and Afghanistan — Rodriguez, a diesel mechanic with Camp Pendleton's CLB 7, saw his daughter's birth.Ava Marie Rodriguez was born at 3:17 p.m. Monday after Destiny was in labor for eight hours. She was surrounded by friends and family — and joined with her husband for the moment through a satellite connection.
"We were both crying," said Destiny Rodriguez, 26, from her room at Mission Hospital. "It was exciting and emotional."
The foundation, said its executive director John Harlow, seeks to enable combat troops to participate in milestone events like weddings and births.
"The long-term vision is that our war fighters will be able to come home from a day on the battlefield and spend virtual time with their families every night using state–of–the–art technology," Harlow said via satellite broadcast. "The contribution of resources by community citizens like Mission Hospital enables the foundation to fulfill its mission."
The foundation organizes 200 to 300 conference calls a month for couples in similar scenarios. More than 2,000 people have been served since the company developed its technology four years ago.
Harlow said he was inspired to start the privately-funded foundation after he heard about a National Guardsman who spent more than $3,000 in one month to call his wife. Now the foundation, he said, saves military families more than $4 million a year.
On Tuesday the foundation hooked up another call to Al Asad, Iraq, where Juan, 27, is based.
It has become increasingly commonplace to see communications services, such as satellite and internet in Iraq.
This time Destiny – in the afterglow of new motherhood – dressed day-old Ava in a camouflage jumper and wrapped her in a Marine Corps blanket. She held her up to the camera's eye so Juan could see her.
"It feels like I'm home," Juan said, his eyes glistening and confessing to Destiny that he and his buddies smoked cigars to celebrate Ava's birth.
Aileen Slivkoff, a labor and delivery nurse, was in the Mission Hospital room with Destiny. Ava's birth marked the first time that Mission Hospital worked with the foundation to link a warrior with family back home. The Rodriguezes, originally from La Mirada, live at Camp Pendleton.
"It was really good for her husband to see the delivery," Slivkoff said. "I always have dads come into the room even if they say they're going to pass out. In the end I always get good feedback and they say they wouldn't have wanted to miss it."
