After a bad car crash, a Fort Morgan man makes it home in time for the holidays — and the birth of his 11th child

Phil Ruby was in a car crash in October. After weeks in the hospital, he was able to make it home in time for the holidays — and for the birth of his 11th child. Photo courtesy of Elyse Ruby.

By Kelly Ragan

Elyse Ruby told her children she’d be home early to celebrate her daughter’s birthday. After such a stressful season with her husband, Phil, in the hospital, they were all looking forward to it.

But Elyse was late, and her 10 children glared at her through the window as she pulled up to their Fort Morgan home. 

“I think they were all ready to read me the Riot Act for not getting home on time,” Elyse said with a laugh. 

But when the kids saw Phil, any annoyance melted into surprised joy. 

Several of Phil Ruby’s children crowd around him as he arrived home from the hospital in November. Photo courtesy of Elyse Ruby.

“You just heard the echo through the house, ‘dad’s home!’” Elyse said. Phil was in a car crash in October 19. The last thing he remembers before the crash was calling Elyse to tell her he’d be home in an hour after checking in on some of their rental properties in Otis, Colorado. 

Elyse admits she was pissed at her husband. She was 30-some weeks pregnant then and had spent the day taking care of the kids. Remember, they have 10.  

“I was like ‘where the heck are you?’” Elyse said. 

When the hospital called about four hours later, she didn’t recognize the number, so she let it go to voicemail. 

But then she listened. Phil was at North Colorado Medical Center in Greeley. There had been a crash bad enough that first responders had to cut him out of his truck and fly him to the hospital. State patrol eventually told her Phil collided with a semi-truck loaded down with a hay grinder. 

When Elyse got to the hospital, she learned Phil had a broken cheek bone, three broken ribs, a collapsed lung and a laceration on his knee. But that wasn’t the worst of it. Phil was in and out of intensive care as doctors discovered a torn aorta, inches of dead intestine and several blood clots. 

 Elyse said doctors seemed very calming and comforting about it all at the time, but they later told her Phil shouldn’t have made it out alive. 

“God has a plan for him,” Elyse said. “I held onto that more than anything else.”

Phil spent nearly a month in the hospital. . Most of that month is a blur, but he does remember getting off the ventilator in time to sing Happy Birthday over FaceTime to his daughter as she turned 12. Visitor access, after all, was limited with COVID-19 restrictions in place. 

He was released from the hospital November 7,  in time to spend Thanksgiving and Christmas with his wife and children. He was also able to be there as Elyse gave birth to their 11th child and seventh daughter. 

“I’ve come away with a renewed sense of purpose, and an appreciation for family and the things that really matter,” Phil said.