Las Vegas Sun

March 18, 2024

Births of quintuplets bless, humble Las Vegas family

quintuplets

Courtesy Photo

The Derrico family welcomed quintuplets at Banner Desert Medical Center in Mesa, Ariz. on Friday, September 6, 2013.

Derrico Family Welcomes Quintuplets

A neonatal intensive care unit nurse puts a foot warmer on Daician Derrico at Summerlin Hospital Medical Center, Friday, Sept. 20, 2013, in Las Vegas. Daician was one in a set of quintuplets born to Deon and Evonne Derrico two weeks ago in Phoenix where the family moved 22 weeks into Evonne Derrico's pregnancy to be closer to doctors specializing in multiple births. Launch slideshow »

Mother and babies — all five of them — were resting quietly Tuesday afternoon, at least for the time being.

But Deon Derrico, the quintuplets’ father and husband of the babies’ mother, Evonne Derrico, has a lot of work to do starting now.

“We have a vehicle for the family right now, but we don’t have a vehicle for the five others,” said Deon Derrico, who works as a field property manager. “There’s just so much to figure out.”

Evonne Derrico, 33, gave birth to quintuplets — three girls and two boys — Friday at Banner Desert Medical Center in Mesa, Ariz., the hospital announced Tuesday.

“We are all doing great,” the proud father said in a telephone interview from the hospital. “Excited is an understatement.”

The Derricos are from Las Vegas but temporarily relocated to Arizona while awaiting the birth of their quintuplets. After Evonne Derrico’s pregnancy of 32 weeks and two days, Dr. John Elliott, a perinatologist and multiple-birth specialist, delivered the babies beginning at 11:17 a.m. Friday.

By 11:21 a.m., the deliveries were completed. Their birth order:

• Deniko, a boy, born at 11:17 a.m.

• Dariz, a boy, born at 11:18 a.m.

• Deonee, a girl, born at 11:19 a.m.

• Daician, a girl, born at 11:20 a.m.

• Daiten, a girl, born at 11:21 a.m.

In accordance with family tradition, the children all have names beginning with D.

The quints — who ranged in weight from 1 pound, 14 ounces to 2 pounds, 15 ounces — are being cared for in the neonatal intensive care unit at Cardon Children’s Medical Center. Their mother remains in good condition at Banner Desert Medical Center.

The Derrico quintuplets were the fifth set of out-of-state quints delivered in the past year at Banner Desert and cared for at Cardon Children’s Medical Center.

Evonne Derrico didn’t know the babies’ genders prior to birth, so she announced “boy” or “girl” as doctors presented the babies to her in the delivery room, hospital officials said.

Deon Derrico said he and his wife conceived the quintuplets naturally — without any fertility drugs.

Multiples run in his family, Deon Derrico said. The couple already has year-old twin boys, in addition to a 7-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son.

In March, doctors informed the Derricos they were expecting quadruplets, but during a follow-up appointment two days later, they realized there was a fifth baby.

Words cannot begin to describe the couple’s emotions upon hearing that news, Deon Derrico said.

“This has humbled me,” he said. “I feel very honored that God chose us.”

Once all the quintuplets have been discharged from the NICU, the family plans to return to its five-bedroom home in Las Vegas. A bonus room will serve as nursery.

The quints likely will remain in the hospital for a month, during which time dad will be traveling back and forth to Las Vegas preparing for their homecoming.

The birth part alone was “so much rush,” he acknowledged. Now begins part two: Life as a family of 11.

As Deon Derrico begins his search for a larger vehicle to accommodate 11, he knows this: He and his wife won’t be turning down any offers to help from family and friends.

Join the Discussion:

Check this out for a full explanation of our conversion to the LiveFyre commenting system and instructions on how to sign up for an account.

Full comments policy