She fell asleep shortly after a hard day of work and just a few short hours later, Ashley Miller found herself going into labor early at her Mahoning Township home.

Thankfully for Miller, local medical teams were ready to assist and sprung to action to ensure her baby daughter, Wren, was delivered safely.

To recognize the work of their local medical teams, Ashley and Andrew Miller met Monday evening at the Lehighton Ambulance Station at 516 Iron St, Lehighton.

The couple wanted to acknowledge and celebrate the crews that assisted Ashley when she went into labor at her home, and then proceeded to provide care and transport to her and her newborn.

Those who were recognized by the couple include Katie Brace, EMT, Mahoning Valley Ambulance Association; Marcus Maschal, paramedic, Lehighton Ambulance Association; Brian Gross, paramedic, Lehighton Ambulance Association; and Richard Kott Jr., EMT, Lehighton Ambulance Association.

Ashley said she left work at 11:30 p.m., returned home a little after midnight, and fell right asleep.

At around 2:15 a.m. on June 23, she woke up “and it didn’t take long (to realize) that we probably weren’t going to make it to the hospital because it was like 45 minutes away, so that’s when we decided to call 911. Andrew was sleeping. I originally woke him up telling him we had to get down there, he took one look at me and the amount of pain I was in; I was brought to the floor in pain, and he said ‘there’s no way we’re getting you into the truck.’”

Fortunately, they were able to take Ashley to St. Luke’s Allentown campus to get care after delivery.

Brace and her partner responded with Mahoning Valley Ambulance, while Maschal and Kott responded together in a Lehighton Ambulance, while Gross responded by himself in a Squad from Lehighton Ambulance.

Brace helped Ashley deliver her baby, Wren Miller. Immediately following the delivery, Maschal took over care for the baby, while Brace continued to tend to Ashley.

Maschal and Kott transported the baby, while Brace and her partner transported Ashley, with the assistance of Gross as their paramedic.

The couple said they were grateful to the crews that assisted Ashley.

Both Ashley and Andrew, who are both ER nurses at St. Luke’s Hospital, stated they don’t believe EMS get recognized nearly enough for the impact they have on their communities.

“We wanted to recognize them for how thankless their job is at times,” Ashley said. “It was reassuring to have them there, they responded very quickly, everything went as well as it possibly could.”

Andrew echoed his wife’s sentiments.

“We wanted to recognize everybody who helped,” Andrew said. “It’s a scary thing.”

Above all else, the couple expressed their gratitude for a “happy and healthy delivery.”

Afterward. they pinned stork pins on the crew members that are used in some Emergency Services and some other settings to celebrate someone who helped the “stork” deliver the baby, according to Dawn Benner, director of Education and Public Relations, Lehighton Ambulance Association.

“Some organizations distribute them to their providers to celebrate the rare positives in emergency services, however, many are getting away from it saying “it’s just part of the job,” Benner said. “Typically for emergency services they are only distributed for field deliveries and can be given to the individuals that actually helped deliver the baby or to the dispatcher that talked someone through a delivery before first responders arrive.”

Additionally, the family presented a photo collage thank you postcard, cupcakes, and a small gift bag with snacks to each of the individuals involved (including the second person from Mahoning Valley Ambulance).”

The couple are also parents to a 2-year-old son, Roman.