Mother and newborn doing well after unexpected roadside birth at Casper gas station

What was supposed to be a routine trip to the hospital turned into a once-in-a-lifetime experience for Skylar and Kaleb Clayson of Glenrock. On Monday morning, their second son, Oliver, decided he couldn’t wait — arriving in the parking lot of a Casper gas station, right on his due date.

The family had been driving from Glenrock to Banner Wyoming Medical Center when Skylar’s water broke on the interstate. By the time they pulled off the highway, it was clear Oliver was ready to meet the world.

“I was just pulling off the interstate when I could feel his head,” Skylar recalled. Kaleb immediately called 911 at 6:40 a.m., and just one minute later, baby Oliver made his dramatic debut at 6:41 a.m.

The Casper Fire Department was first on the scene, followed closely by Banner Wyoming Medical Center paramedics Nicole Hodges and Randy Pickett, who quickly took over care for mother and child. For Hodges, who has been a paramedic for seven years, this was her first field delivery.

“This is definitely not what school prepares you for,” she said. “But we had so many hands there to help.”

Pickett, a veteran paramedic with three decades of experience and 20 to 30 field births under his belt, praised the team effort.

“It was a good call all the way around,” he said. “Everyone knew their role.”

Meanwhile, the couple’s 2-year-old son, Malakai, witnessed the entire event from the back seat.

“I think he was looking more at the fire trucks than at me,” Skylar laughed. “It was just crazy.”

Both mom and baby were safely transported to Banner Wyoming Medical Center by ambulance and admitted at 6:50 a.m. Oliver weighed in at a healthy 7 pounds, 6 ounces, and both mother and son are doing well.

Skylar had been experiencing intermittent contractions for weeks and even visited the hospital the night before, only to be sent home to wait. When contractions intensified early Monday, the family prepared for what they assumed would be a standard hospital delivery.

“I had a feeling he would be born on his due date,” Skylar said. “I kept seeing the time 2:22, stuff like that.”

Wyoming’s usually unpredictable winter weather cooperated, allowing the family to make the journey safely.

“I’m just so glad it wasn’t snowing like it normally would be,” she said. “We were going pretty fast.”

Family members who had planned to meet the couple at the hospital ended up rendezvousing at the gas station instead, helping care for young Malakai while the excitement unfolded.

Banner Wyoming Medical Center congratulated the Claysons on their newest addition and praised the rapid response of local emergency services that ensured a safe delivery.

From Glenrock to Casper, and from highway to gas station parking lot, Oliver’s first minutes made for a story the family—and Wyoming—won’t soon forget.