Meet 2009 Babytalk Cover Contest Winner Rowan Spracklen!
14-month-old Rowan Spracklen graces the November cover of the magazine.
Oct. 12, 2009 — -- Babytalk magazine named Rowan Spracklen the winner of its 10th annual cover contest on "Good Morning America" today.
"Good Morning America" viewers from across the country logged on in record-setting numbers to cast 16,000 votes for the 14-month-old baby from Erie, Pa.
Babytalk editor-in-chief Ana Connery revealed the November cover live on "GMA" and Rowan and his parents, Mia and Adrian Spracklen, were on the set in Times Square when they learned Rowan was the winner.
Rowan had a "personality like no other kid we saw," Connery said.
November is National Adoption Month, something that has a special meaning for the Spracklen family, who adopted Rowan from Ethiopia in January when he was 6 months old.
Baby Rowan was abandoned at a police station and sent to an orphanage. Although the orphanage took care of him as well as they could, his parents said he was malnourished and sick.
Despite this, Rowan has adjusted well to his new surroundings. His family calls him a miracle and a survivor.
"We're really lucky," Adrain Spracklen said on "GMA."
Rowan has three older sisters, Henley, 10, Teagan, 8 and Luca, 6, who he loves to play with.
Rowan's mother decided to enter the contest because, she says, whenever they are in public, people always stop to admire him.
Babytalk Cover Contest Winner Rowan Spracklen
In addition to gracing the November cover, Rowan and his family will receive a $1,000 gift card from The Children's Place.
The contest was launched in March, and Rowan was one of eight semi-finalists chosen from more than 50,000 entries.
The semi-finalists were flown to New York City for a photo shoot and the group was then narrowed to three finalists.
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