The heartbroken mother of twin girls who died in a terrible accident has broken her silence with a moving tribute to her “precious angels”.
Twin sisters Macey and Riley, aged seven, died when the Toyota Camry they were traveling in left the road and crashed into a tree halfway between Perth and Kalgoorlie.
The girls’ mother, Rachel van Oyen, 31, was behind the wheel when the vehicle left the Great Eastern Highway at Carrabin about 11am on February 18.
The twins, who were wearing seat belts, were pronounced dead at the scene while their mother was rushed to Merredin Hospital.
Oyen escaped the accident without serious injuries, but has since shared his grief in a social media post, stating that everything had changed “in the blink of an eye.”
Seven-year-old twin sisters Macey and Riley (pictured with mother Rachel van Oyen) died when the Toyota Camry they were traveling in crashed into a tree halfway between Perth and Kalgoorlie.
The girls’ mother, Rachel van Oyen, 31, was behind the wheel when the vehicle left the Great Eastern Highway (pictured) at Carrabin about 11am on Sunday.
“My whole world fell apart, disappeared,” Mrs. Oyen said.
‘There are still no words to describe this emptiness and pain in which I am drowning. It should have been me. What I would give to take your places, my beautiful girls.
“I’ve never felt as helpless as I did that day, all I could do was try to hug you briefly even though you both had grown wings.”
Oyen said her twin girls were her “absolute world” and that her daughters gave her strength of purpose and a reason to live.
The grieving mother explained that she felt “very lost” not having her daughters in the family home and was “really sorry” about the accident.
“Silence kills me and your absence destroys us in ways we cannot imagine… I am so lost,” Oyen wrote.
‘I hope you both know how sorry I am, all I can do is try to get through each day knowing it will never be full of your beautiful faces.
‘Your time on earth was too short and I’m not ready to say goodbye. Nobody is.’
The 31-year-old promised her twins that she would not let the pain of their loss consume her forever and that she would spread the kindness and joy they brought to others.
Oyen’s mother, Lisa Lisa Blair, thanked family and friends for their support on social media.
“(We) will be away for a while as our family navigates this unspeakable tragedy,” she posted on social media,” Ms. Blair wrote.
‘Thank you for your understanding and for loving us all during these dark days.
“We are completely devastated.”
It is understood the trio had been visiting family members in Kalgoorie and were heading home to Perth when they crashed.
Oyen said he was drowning in pain and emptiness since the accident. Other family members have described the twins as “vibrant, bold and beautiful” with “lots of life and promise ahead of them.”
The girls’ grandmother described them as “sunny souls” in a 2020 Facebook post.
She lovingly described her granddaughters as “beautiful, fun, sassy, magical little twins who” bring so much joy to their entire family.
TO GofundMe has been created by family member Phillip van Oyen, who described the girls as “vibrant, bold and beautiful” with “lots of life and promise ahead of them.”
“Macey and Riley brought us so much love and joy and, as difficult as it is without them, our lives have been improved by their short existence,” Mr Oyen said.
“The impact those two little lives had on our family is immeasurable and the weight of their absence is felt every day.”
Oyen explained that all funds raised will be given to the twins’ mother to help her overcome grief and rebuild her life.
“There is nothing we can do to change this devastating situation, but we want to try to make Rachel’s life a little easier as she grieves and rebuilds,” Oyen wrote.
‘Rachel, who supported and cared for her two daughters throughout their lives, gave it her all! As she begins to come to terms with this tragic loss, we want to make sure that Rachel is taken care of and that she can slowly begin to live life without Macey and Riley.”
As of this writing, the fund has received 341 donations totaling $37,450, with a goal of raising $70,000.