The day Ashton Matheny buried his longtime girlfriend, Savanna LaFontaine-Greywind, was also the day he learned that DNA tests had confirmed that a baby found in a neighbor's apartment was theirs.
On Monday, he shared the news — a bright spot in what's been a tragic time for LaFontaine-Greywind's family and friends since the pregnant 22-year-old disappeared Aug. 19. Five days later, police serving a search warrant to a couple living in the same Fargo apartment building found the newborn baby. The pair are accused of planning to claim the girl as their own.
"I've been waiting to be a father for a while," Matheny said Monday. "She's the only good thing that came out of this. She looks a lot like Savanna."
The dark-haired, smiley baby, Haisley Jo Greywind-Matheny, is healthy and has been with her father since she was released from the hospital. The family brought the baby to her mother's funeral in Fargo last week, joining hundreds of other family, friends and strangers from across the region.
"The family is just very happy they can be with her now," said Janel Herald, a family friend and spokeswoman. "She's a little bottle of sunshine."
LaFontaine-Greywind was eight months pregnant and both she and Matheny were anticipating the birth of their first child at the end of September.
LaFontaine-Greywind's parents, Norberta and Joe Greywind, moved out of the apartment they shared with their daughter last weekend, Herald said. They also celebrated Grandparents Day on Sunday by caring overnight for Haisley Jo — her middle name honoring her grandfather — cherished time with the baby for a grieving family, Herald said.
