BETHANY VICTORIA
“My husband, Joe, and I met at Bethany College while we were both students. While we were in college, we would walk around the beautiful campus, talk and plan our future. One of those future plans was to one day have a daughter and name her Bethany to honor our special memories of the college. Eleven years after she was named, our beautiful Bethany Victoria joined our family.”
— Candi Noble-Greathouse of Wheeling

ELLIOT CONRAD
“We chose Elliot because we wanted a name that was different and that could not easily be given a nickname. However, my 2-year-old nephew who cannot say ‘Elliot’ has already shortened it to ‘Elli,’ a name that is unfortunately sticking among my family members. Conrad is my husband’s middle name as well as my mother-in-law’s maiden name.”
— April Henry of Martins Ferry

KAYLEY and KAMRYN
“I chose Kayley because it looked balanced in print. I taught second grade and I like balance. ... I also liked the way Kamryn looked in print and wanted a unique spelling.”
— Kim Miller of Wheeling

OLIVIA EILEEN
“Olivia was simply a name that we agreed upon. ... Eileen was my grandmother’s name. I always knew if I had a girl her middle name would be Eileen.”
— Laura Doty of Bridgeport

COLLIN and HAYDEN
“I heard the name Collin years before I ever had children and I knew I wanted to name my child Collin. I got the name Hayden from a baby name book and fell in love with it.”
— Karla Gaus of Wheeling

HAILEY GRACE
“The only name my husband and I could agree on was Hailey — it means “creative heart.” Good thing we had a girl! Grace is after her great-grandma who passed away before she was born.”
— Carrie Downer of Wheeling

WILLIAM HUCKLEBERRY
“Chosen for several reasons: First name is that of the mom’s side of the family (Kimberly Williams) and also a family name in Brad (Paisley)’s maternal side (great-grandfather). And of course Huckleberry for the ‘adventuresome’ Huck Finn from the Mark Twain novels.”
— Doug and Sandy Paisley (grandparents) of Glen Dale

ALAINA BROOK and ROBERT JAMES
“Alaina Brook: We were looking for a nice three-syllable name that was different, but not off-the-wall. Her middle name is the same as her father’s — named after the West Virginia county his mother is from (but it isn’t spelled correctly). Robert James: A family name. My husband said every Jim he has ever met has been a nice guy so we named our son Jim.”
— Jane Gracey of Wheeling

HARRISON
“My grandfather, Clarence Clark, was one of 13 children born and raised in Stewartsville. Several of my cousins have used their names in honor of their family, and I wanted to do the same. My grandfather’s name was already taken, but one of his brothers’ names was Harry. My husband absolutely refused Harry, but he liked and suggested Harrison. It was a perfect compromise.
— Shasta Clark of Chagrin Falls, Ohio (formerly of St. Clairsville)

EMMA SKYE
“Dave liked the name Emily and I liked Hannah; we compromised with Emma. Skye is after the Isle of Skye in Scotland, where we honeymooned. It’s our happy place.”
— Betsy Bethel, OV Parent editor

MARGARET MARY
“I named her after my grandmother. .... It’s a traditional name but not a common name.”
— Bianca Benson of Wheeling

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