Where is Baby Jessica now? A look at her life decades after falling into a well
'I had God on my side that day. My life is a miracle.'
In 1987, the story of 18-month-old baby Jessica McClure made global news after she was trapped in a well for three days. The delicate rescue operation saved her life, and today, she is a wife and doting mother.
Source: UGC
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- Key takeaways
- Baby Jessica's profile summary
- Where is Baby Jessica now?
- What happened to Baby Jessica?
- Baby Jessica's rescue is ingrained in pop culture
- How much money did Baby Jessica receive?
- What happened to the paramedic who rescued Jessica McClure?
- Are Jessica McClure's parents still together?
- What does Baby Jessica do now?
Key takeaways
- Baby Jessica's parents were teenagers when they welcomed her in 1986 but divorced three years after the incident.
- Jessica underwent 15 surgeries after surviving a 58-hour rescue operation.
- With her family by her side, she lives and works in Texas.
Baby Jessica's profile summary
| Full name | Jessica McClure Morales |
| Date of birth | March 26, 1986 |
| Age | 38 years old as of March 2025 |
| Place of birth | Midland, Texas |
| Current residence | Midland, Texas |
| Religion | Christian |
| Marital status | Married |
| Husband | Daniel Morales (2006 to date) |
| Children | Simon and Sheyenne |
| Parents | Reba ‘Cissy’ and Lewis ‘Chip’ McClure |
| Education | Midland Christian School, Greenwood High School |
| Profession | Landscape labourer, former special ed teacher's aide |
| Social media |
Where is Baby Jessica now?
Jessica McClure lives in Midland, Texas. In 2006, she married Daniel Morales in a low-key ceremony. The couple met in 2005 through Danny's sister.
From survivor to mom of two children
Daniel and Jessica welcomed two kids: son Simon Morales (born in July 2006) and daughter Sheyenne Morales (born in June 2009).
It has been nearly forty years since the life-changing event, and effects of the trauma continue throughout Jessica's life. She told People in 2017 that the bullying she received from other kids due to her experience played a huge role in how she parents her two kids.
'That part of my life made me the kind of mom that I am: to express to my kids that it's not right. My kids have good hearts.'
Source: Original
What happened to Baby Jessica?
On October 14, 1987, Jessica was playing in her aunt's backyard in Midland, Texas, when she slipped and fell into a 22-foot well that was only 8 inches wide. Her aunt, Jamie Moore, operated unlicensed daycare services alongside Jessica's mother, Reba McClure.
The responders struggled to find an easy way to get her out. Jessica was trapped in the shaft for 58 hours before they managed to rescue her.
Source: Getty Images
How Baby Jessica was rescued
Baby Jessica's heroic rescue involved help from Texas oil drilling experts, paramedics, and emergency responders. Rescuers drilled a vertical 76.2 cm-wide shaft parallel to the well while listening to the baby through a microphone as she sang nursery rhymes and cried. They also supplied her with oxygen.
They then drilled a horizontal tunnel through solid rock to reach Jessica. The process had to be carefully handled because any wrong move could have injured or killed the trapped toddler. The event aired on CNN, America's only 24-hour news network in the 80s.
Source: Getty Images
Baby Jessica's injuries required cosmetic repair
Jessica underwent a total of 15 surgeries that were paid for by well-wishers. She badly injured her right foot, which was above her head the entire 58 hours that she was in the well. The position cut blood circulation to her foot, resulting in gangrene.
The doctors managed to reconstruct the foot without amputation. The operation resulted in Jessica's right foot being shorter than her left leg. She also lost her right pinkie toe.
McClure injured her forehead in the fall and required cosmetic surgery to repair the damage. Today, she has a barely noticeable scar. She also got rheumatoid arthritis but managed to make a full recovery.
Source: Getty Images
Baby Jessica's rescue is ingrained in pop culture
Jessica McClure's experiences have been referenced several times in popular media. A 1989 TV movie called Everybody's Baby: The Rescue of Jessica McClure recreated the events.
In the hit ABC sitcom Modern Family, Eric Stonestreet's character Cameron Tucker reveals in the 'Heavy is the Head' episode that he was stuck in a well on the same day as Jessica. The event is also referenced in a 2013 SNL episode.
Jessica met President George H.W. Bush at the White House in 1989. The well she fell in is now sealed off using an engraved stone with the words, 'For Jessica, 10-16-87, with love from all of us' written on it. McClure has been back at the well several times and told People in June 2019,
'To me, it is a symbol that it could have taken my life, but it didn't. I had God on my side that day.'
Source: Getty Images
How much money did Baby Jessica receive?
Good Samaritans across the world donated around $1.2 million. The money was placed into a trust fund to be accessed by Jessica when she turned 25.
Most of the money was reportedly wiped out during the 2008 stock market crash, falling to $300,000. Jessica used the remaining amount to pay for her education and purchase a family home in Midland, Texas.
What happened to the paramedic who rescued Jessica McClure?
Jessica was eased out of the tunnel by paramedic Robert O'Donnell, who crawled through the dug tunnel to get to her. He unfortunately took his own life in 1995 due to PTSD from the rescue operation.
Paramedic Steve Forbes carried the toddler after her rescue from the well. He retired from the Midland Fire Department in 2014. Jessica told the NY Times in 2018 that she kept in touch with Steve Forbes' family.
Source: Getty Images
Are Jessica McClure's parents still together?
Baby Jessica was born to 18-year-old teenage parents, Lewis 'Chip' McClure and Reba 'Cissy' McClure. The McClures divorced in 1990.
Her father met and married Amy, with whom he welcomed six kids. Chip still lives in Texas, where he sells planes at Ridge Aire. Cissy has stayed out of the spotlight.
Source: Getty Images
What does Baby Jessica do now?
Today, Jessica McClure works as a landscape labourer at Richards Horticulture in Midland, according to her Facebook. She was previously employed as a special education teacher's aide at an elementary school in Midland.
Jessica also worked as a manager at Grandview Mufflers from 2018 to 2020. Her husband, Danny, is a foreman at a pipeline supply company.
Source: Facebook
Jessica has no memory of the ordeal that happened when she was a baby, apart from physical reminders, including her reconstructed right leg, a forehead scar, and rheumatoid arthritis. She treats the ordeal as a learning miracle and still has letters and memorabilia she received from well-wishers.
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Alice Wabwile (Lifestyle writer) Alice Wabwile is a multifaceted content creator and Project Assistant at AfDAN, boasting over four years of experience. Holding a BCom degree from the University of Nairobi School of Business, she has cultivated a dynamic skill set through roles such as her tenure at Strathmore University's Data Science Department, where she contributed significantly to research. Recognized for her exceptional talent, she clinched the Writer of the Year Award. Beyond her professional endeavours, Alice is an engaged member of the Rotaract Club of Kabete. For inquiries, reach out to her at alicenjoro01@gmail.com
Nicolette Marais (Lifestyle editor) Nicolette has been a senior managing editor at Briefly.co.za since December 2021. With more than 17 years writing experience in both creative and media-related platforms, she has worked in a wide range of industries and uses this in her writing. In 2023, Nicolette finished the AFP course on Digital Investigation Techniques and was awarded Manager of the Year (2023 and 2024). E-mail: lifelineva@outlook.com
