Rachael and Kirsty Hoyles from Cwmcarn sadly lost their twin baby boys, Bayden and Jude within weeks of each other and were utterly heartbroken by this tragedy.

Rachael and Kirsty both decided they wanted to help other parents who have suffered baby loss and have kindly donated two cuddle cots so that parents can spend precious time with their baby before saying a final goodbye.

During an emotional presentation, Mum Rachael tells her story:

“We had a twin pregnancy last year and we lost one of the babies in the womb on the 13th December 2018 to encephalocele. We then gave birth to both of the babies on the 18 April. When Jude was born, he had a congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) and he was cared for in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the University Hospital of Wales for fourteen days before he passed away.

“We wanted to raise money for cuddle cots for the unit as the team had helped both of our babies so much and the cuddle cots meant that we could spend precious time with Bayden and Jude saying our final goodbyes. We managed to take Jude home for the night which was a bit more normal for us rather than being in the hospital.

“The nurses made this awful experience so much better for us during such a difficult time. We were the type of parents who didn’t leave their babies bedside unless we were forced out of the door.

“We stayed in Ronald McDonald House so that we were always close by. We’d ring the ward in the middle of the night to check and see how he was doing and find out if they needed us to come over.

“We wanted raise money to give something back to the unit and to help other parents going through this. We organised a fundraising day in Swansea, which was a lovely family day for children with events and raffles – the community really came together to give us some wonderful prizes – I think there were 52 in total. We were overwhelmed by everyone’s support. People we didn’t know were coming up to us and giving us money and donating gifts to be used as prizes.

“This support from friends, family and the community has given us strength to carry on. When we held the event in Swansea the community said they had never had a fundraiser that was so good. Now, every August Bank Holiday we plan to celebrate their lives by holding a fundraising event for Twin Hoyles Day.

“We’d both like to say thank you to the nurses and doctors on the unit and also to the maternity ward nurses who gave me brilliant aftercare.

“We’d also like to thank the charities SCIPS and 4Louis for helping us to purchase the cuddle cots.

“Our biggest thanks goes to the Neonatal Nurses for everything they did for Jude and for us. They helped us make memories that we will cherish forever and they took time to write diaries for Jude which we read every day. The night that Jude died, everyone was by his side and no one left him – they are a credit to the hospital.”

Louise Bridge, Neonatal Nurse at the University Hospital of Wales said: “The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit is very grateful for the kind donation of two cuddle cots from Rachael and Kirsty.

“Their donations will enable us to help our little ones, that sadly pass away far too early, to remain longer with their parents to create everlasting memories.

“It is so inspiring that Rachael and Kirsty, with the help of their family and friends, were able to channel their grief into something that will be of great help to other parents going through similar experiences.”

To donate to Rachael and Kirsty Hoyles fundraising visit: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/jude-bayden-hoyles