AMERICAN football’s Super Bowl Sunday was a memorable night for the 100 million people who tuned in to watch but for two Red Lodge residents, it’s a night they’ll celebrate for the rest of their lives.
While everyone else was watching pop star Beyoncé perform during the traditional half-time show, Sgt Ruben TrejoSanchez, who is based at RAF Lakenheath, was helping his wife deliver his first-born child, Alexis Quinn.
As Ruben was watching the first half of the game between the Ravens and the 49ers, Sgt Patti TrejoSanchez started having contractions.
Ruben said: “Around 11:48 pm I downloaded an app on my iPad to keep track of the contractions. The medical group told me the criteria was 2-3 minutes apart, 60 seconds each so I started counting them.”
Ruben called the hospital to see if they needed to come in. He was told if his wife was able to tolerate a contraction they were not strong enough and she wasn’t ready. Ruben didn’t think much of it since they were going to the hospital in the morning.
“I guess I have a pretty high pain tolerance,” said Patti. “I was waiting for my water to break.”
At 12:45 am, Ruben called the hospital again; Patti could no longer take the contractions.
“The hospital told me it was time for us to come in,” said Ruben.
But Patti knew something was wrong. She stood up to show her husband the situation.
“I could see the baby’s head,” said Ruben.
Minutes before the half-time show, Ruben scrambled to get everything together for the hospital.
Ruben called for an ambulance as Patti got into a delivery position. While on the phone, Patti had another contraction and the dispatcher told Ruben, because the contractions were so close, they would have to deliver the baby at home.
“I was nervous, and I couldn’t believe it was happening,” he said.
He got on the floor and put the phone on speaker. The emergency service operator told Patti to push.
“I grabbed the baby’s head and Patti pushed, I then grabbed the baby’s hips and held her close,” said Ruben.
He then cleaned the baby’s mouth and nose, checked if she was breathing and continued to keep her warm.
“It’s a good feeling knowing that I was the first person to hold my daughter,” said Ruben.
About 20 minutes after the initial call, the paramedics were on scene and Ruben was able to cut the umbilical cord while his wife received treatment.
“Mark Keeler and Laurence Milton (paramedics) were awesome and very professional. They took care of my wife and brought her to the base hospital,” said Ruben.
The Ravens may have won the Super Bowl but for Patti, it was Ruben that scored the winning touchdown.
“My husband did an amazing job; he was stressed but stayed calm, a lot better than I give him credit for,” said Patti. “Our family dynamic has changed, our trust for one another has grown and we are closer than before.”
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