Southwest Michigan’s first baby of the year is Lillian Helton, born at Lakeland Hospital in Niles yesterday. According to Lakeland, she was born at 4:46 a.m. to Ciara Lamb and James Helton of Union. The little girl was eight pounds, eight ounces and 21 inches long. The Lakeland Auxiliary provided the family with a gift basket of baby items with a value of $100, as is their tradition. In the last fiscal year, 1,630 babies were born at Lakeland hospitals in St. Joseph and Niles.