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Alex Cabrero reporting A Utah family is dealing with a tragic loss after their father died in a car accident.
Steven Mortensen was on his way home during Wednesday's snowstorm. He left behind a wife, and twelve children.
Now, that big family is trying to figure out how they're going to live. Mortensen was their sole provider. Now they have a lot of worries and fear.
In a family this big, you know you'll always have someone to lean on.
Craig Mortensen, Oldest Brother: "Our family stays very close."
But after this past Wednesday, Monica Mortensen just might need them all to stay on her feet.
Craig Mortensen, Oldest Brother: "She�s having a real hard time, and being that large of a family, it's taken a real toll on what's she's going to do."
Her husband, Steve, was coming home to Kearns from Salina this past Wednesday in the middle of a snowstorm. The truck he was in slid on black ice and rolled over.
Monica just happened to be on the phone with him when it happened.
Craig Mortensen, Oldest Brother: "He said uh-oh, it looks like we're going for a ride, and in the process, the phone went dead, and that when the rollover occurred."
Steve would never say another word again. The crash killed him.
Craig Mortensen, Oldest Brother: "Her last words with her husband was that they were going for a ride. Little did she know it was the last chance to speak with him."
Now, she's left with no job, no car, lots of children and even more questions.
But her family is trying to help, remembering the good times; like when Steve let his daughters fix his hair or the times in the swimming pool. Or the times when they were just a big family. It wasn't that long ago.
Craig Mortensen, Oldest Brother: "The good Lord puts us here for a time and a purpose, and he calls us when it's his time and his purpose for us to go home."
The Mortensens are waiting to make funeral plans until they know for sure when one of their sons in the military is coming home from Iraq.
