Forgive Roman and Carli Brasfield if their voices tremble when they talk about their son. After everything they have endured, emotion comes easily — especially during a season that has brought them more joy than they once dared hope for.
Their baby, Barrett, wasn’t supposed to have much of a chance.
Born on June 6, 2024, at just 26 weeks, Barrett entered the world weighing only 1 pound, 1 ounce. He was impossibly small. Fragile. And from the very beginning, every single day was uncertain.
But almost immediately, something about him stood out.
As he slowly gained ounces in the NICU, Barrett would thrust his tiny arms forward, as if throwing punches at the odds stacked against him. His parents started calling him the baby with “a puncher’s chance.”
Now, at 19 months old, the Homewood, Alabama toddler continues to fight — and win.
Barrett still depends on a tracheostomy and is on a ventilator 22 hours a day. He also relies on a feeding tube. But despite the medical challenges, his progress has been remarkable.
“He’s starting to talk, he’s standing up, and he’s getting ready to walk,” Carli Brasfield shared. “Barrett gurgles words all day. He’s also eating some baby food by mouth as we work toward getting him off his feeding tube.”
After battling sepsis, infections, and a long list of complications, Barrett is now a bright, joyful little boy with a future his parents once feared he might never have.
And he has a favorite word.
“Ga-ga,” Carli said, her voice filled with happiness.
For Roman and Carli, Christmas and New Year’s were more than holidays — they were milestones. Proof that their tiny fighter is still here, still growing, still punching forward.
Barrett Brasfield is winning his fight — one small, powerful victory at a time. 💙
