A heart-wrenching video uploaded on YouTube that shows a father singing the Beatles song Blackbird to his dying newborn baby boy has gone viral.
Chris Picco's wife, 30-year-old Ashley, died a few days earlier during an emergency C-section procedure while giving birth to their son, who was at just 24 weeks.
Since he entered the world, Lennon James has been in the Intensive Care Unit, where doctors attempted to nurse the baby into good health.
In the video, Picco, with his guitar, was at Lennon's bedside and was strumming the song by Paul McCartney.
Tragically, just hours after Picco serenaded Lennon, the baby died from complications after four days of fighting to live.
In a memorial page dedicated to his deceased wife, Picco explained that Ashley often feels Lennon responding whenever there's music. This gave Picco the idea of bringing his guitar to Lennon's beside and to give him a little concert.
"My little fighter, Lennon James Picco went to sleep in his daddy's arms late last night," Picco wrote in a message for his friends, family and supporters.
Picco added that Lennon was in the presence of family, friends, and the world's best doctors, nurses and hospital staff. At that moment, Lennon was wearing an outfit that was bought for the baby by Ashley that had little guitars printed onto it. The baby was also wrapped inside a blanket that was made for Lennon by one of Picco's close friends.
Picco continues by saying that he was very thankful for the four days that he was able to spend with Lennon.
"His mommy would have been so beyond joy to see him and to hold him, touch him, bathe him, sing to him - as I have had the privilege of doing," Picco wrote.
Picco adds that he feels so honored and blessed to have had the chance to love Lennon even before he was formed, to cherish his son while still in the womb of Ashley, and to have met Lennon face to face, to be able to hold the baby's body while saying "goodbye for now."
The video was also posted on Reddit, through which messages containing words of support began to pour in for Picco.
The Ashley Picco Memorial Fund's goal of reaching $50,000 has already been surpassed, with the total amount continuing to increase as Picco's video with Lennon gains more hits.
The fund will be spent for the coverage of the accrued medical expenses relating to Ashley's and Lennon's hospitalizations.
