Widow Gives Birth After White House Staffer Husband's Death in Md. Bicycle Crash

The widow of a White House adviser has given birth to a baby girl, two and a half months after losing her husband in a bicycle crash.

Jacob "Jake" Brewer died Sept. 19 while participating in the Ride of Conquer Cancer event in Howard County, Maryland.

On Sunday, his widow, Mary Katharine Ham, announced the birth of their second daughter on Instagram, WUSA 9 reported.

Ham posted, "World, meet Garnet J. Brewer! At 7 lbs., 13 oz. & 21 in., she made her appearance after 5.5 hours of blessedly safe & awesome natural labor Nov. 28 at 5:15 am..."

The baby's middle initial is in honor of her father, and her first name comes from a hike the couple took above Garnet Canyon, Wyoming, when Ham was expecting their first child.

"I feel confident he'd love the name and is proud of all us girls today," she wrote.

World, meet Garnet J. Brewer! At 7 lbs., 13 oz. & 21 in., she made her appearance after 5.5 hours of blessedly safe & awesome natural labor Nov. 28 at 5:15 am, reminding her mom this childbirth thing is no joke, hard core, & beautiful. Her middle initial is for her dad, Jake. Her first name comes from a memorable hike Jake & I did above Garnet Canyon in WY when I was 7 mos pregnant w our first. I feel confident he'd love the name and is proud of all us girls today. That's Jake's wonderful sister standing in as my birth coach in this pic of us a couple hours after the birth. We were home from the birth center in time for the Dawgs game! Big sis seems unfazed. Thanks for all the prayers and love. We will always miss Jake, but we know we are taken care of and so does he. Jer 29:11, Proverbs 31:25

A photo posted by Mary Katharine Ham (@mkhammertime) on Nov 29, 2015 at 10:41am PST

Brewer, of Alexandria, Virginia, was just 34 when he died. Police say he was cycling west on Old Frederick Road when he lost control on a sharp curve and crossed into the eastbound lanes, where he was struck by an SUV.

He was pronounced dead at the scene. 

"...I lost part of my heart and the father of my sweet babies," Ham said in a statement after his death. "...I will miss him forever, even more than I can know right now.... I can never be without him because these babies are half him."

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Brewer had worked in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy as a senior adviser to the U.S. Chief Technology Officer.

President Barack Obama said Brewer had a "brilliant mind, a big heart, and an insatiable desire to give back." 

"Michelle and I are praying for all of Jake's family and his many friends, most of all his wife, Mary Katharine Ham, their daughter, Georgia, and their growing family," he said in a statement in September. "They'll always have a family here at the White House."

In the wake of Jake Brewer's death, his family launched a GoFundMe page to help raise money for his children's educations. By Nov. 30, the fund had raised $429,957. 

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Copyright AP - Associated Press
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