Who Is Rhain Alisha? New Details About 'Alaskan Bush People' Star Noah Brown's Wife

The Alaskan Bush People have expanded their family. The youngest son of Billy and Ami Brown just welcomed their first grandchild. Their youngest son, Noah, and his wife Rhain Alisha, welcomed a baby boy who they named Elijah Connor Brown on Jan. 26. Little Elijah was born weighing 7 lbs., 5 oz., and measured 20 inches long. 

“Rhain and I are thrilled to announce the arrival of our son Elijah Connor Brown. Mom and son are healthy and happy — he’s already working on his howl! Rhain is a wonderful mother already, I am truly in awe of her and we are both very grateful and excited to welcome him to our family,” Noah told PEOPLE. Rhain added: “He’s happy, healthy, and just perfect.”

The baby’s birthday couldn’t be more perfect timing for Noah. “Spring is when the birds have their babies, and the deer have their babies, and the bears and the cougars, so we’re gonna have our baby too,” he said. “We just fit right in with the animals.”

The Brown family were super excited to welcome a baby into their family. Billy Brown also announced their excitement over their first grandchild. 

“The day is finally here – we’re grandparents!” Billy said. “Ami is over the moon and we all feel so blessed. We can’t wait to meet the handsome young man and have them all back on the mountain soon.” 

The family will be able to spend time getting to know the new addition as Noah, and his wife Rhain live near the Brown family’s new homestead in rural Washington state. Noah said his mom Ami cried when they told her she was to become a grandmother for the first time. The news was especially thrilling for Ami who was diagnosed in 2017 with stage three lung cancer and endured multiple rounds of treatment before being declared cancer-free in late 2018.

So who is Rhain Alisha? Here’s what we know about Noah Brown’s wife.

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1. Rhain changed her name.

Her birth name was Ruth Alisha Merrill, but in 2017 she legally changed her first name to Rhain. Merrill, who is credited as Rhain Alicia on the Discovery Channel show, was born Ruth Alisha Merrill in Oregon before taking on a new identity in Alaska.

2. Rhain met Noah while his mom was getting cancer treatments.

When Noah Brown’s mother was diagnosed with cancer, the whole Brown family accompanied their mother when she went for cancer treatment, which is where Rhain and Noah met. According to various reports, Rhain wasn’t liked by family members, and Noah was consequently alienated from his family. The show’s fans blamed Rhain for her negative influence on Noah for deserting his family.

3. They married two years after they met.

Noah Brown married Rhain Alisha, in Idaho on Aug. 15, two years to the date they first met. He proposed after a romantic sunset hike last April and designed the engagement ring himself.

The Brown family ditched their usual outdoor garb and dressed up for the couple’s wedding, even if it was out of their comfort zone.

“I tried on a tux for the first time ever,” Gabe noted. “That was weird.” 

“It’s been so hectic and crazy because we’ve had to go get these fancy clothes we haven’t had time to think about it today,” Billy said. 

“We are so excited to start our new life together as husband and wife and we look forward to building new memories as our own family,” Noah and Rhain told PEOPLE. “God bless everyone for all of the love and support.”

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4. Not all members of the Brown family welcomed Rhain.

According to RadarOnline, the family didn’t all welcome Rhain into their clan. Rhain reportedly didn’t get along with Brown’s younger sisters, Rain and Snowbird.

5. Rhain and Noah asked for donations for their honeymoon.

The couple created a web page for people to donate gifts for their honeymoon. They wrote, "Help us enjoy our honeymoon in Montana! Thank you with lots of love!
We have never needed a lot, but these few things would go a long way and be much appreciated."

6. Rhain’s parents met Noah’s at the wedding.

The parents did get to finally meet at the wedding.

“We are on our way down to Oregon to pick up the Mommy in-law and then back up to Idaho for the wedding. It will be good for our parents to finally meet,” Noah wrote in a Facebook post. 

7. The family welcomed Rhain when she became pregnant.

“Noah and Rhain were in the midst of a rough patch with his family prior to their baby news, but the pregnancy has really turned things around for them,” a source said. Once they announced their pregnancy, tensions between the couple and rest of the family began to fade.

“Billy and Ami are over the moon about her pregnancy because Ami has wanted to be a grandmother for so long. Her wish has finally come true and she is feeling so blessed,” the insider added. “The impending birth has brought life back into Ami and has made Noah’s relationship with Billy stronger because he is now coming to him for fatherhood advice.”

The brothers also seemed to embrace Rhain and her pregnancy.

“Every last one of the brothers has suddenly become so much more protective. It’s ridiculous. It’s like, my raging hormones have drawn out their testosterone-fueled protectiveness,” said Rhain. “Everyone’s like, ‘Don’t lift anything over your head.’ ‘Oh, you need a break.’ ‘How are your feet?’ ‘Do you need to sit down?’ ‘Here, let me help you.’ I’m like, ‘C’mon!'" 

8. Rhain and Noah kept the baby’s sex secret.

“Before we were even married, we had talked about names,” Noah said last year. “It was one of the things that we just matched up on perfectly: We knew we wanted three children. But we didn’t know what we’d get, so we set out and we picked three boy names and three girl names.”

Added Rhain: “Just in case we had all three of one or all three of the other. So, we’re ready.”

The Alaskan Bush People returns for season nine on March 3 at 10 p.m. ET on Discovery.

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Maria Lianos-Carbone is author of "Oh Baby! A Mom's Self-Care Survival Guide for the First Year" and publisher of amotherworld.com.