Braydon and Shelby arrived two months premature when they were born in December 2006. The twins weighed just three pounds each, and had to spend the next three months in the Saint John Regional Hospital.

When Shelby’s weight reached five pounds, she was transferred to the IWK in Halifax, NS, where she had open-heart surgery. The operation repaired a small hole in her heart that resulted from her premature arrival.

Through this journey, Braydon and Shelby’s parents, Keri and Ritchie Tyner, made daily trips to the hospital, standing vigil at their babies’ bassinets in the neo-natal unit. From here, they encouraged and celebrated every milestone Braydon and Shelby achieved, until they could all finally go home together as a family.

Their daily trips to the hospital were supported through Fuel the Care. To date, it has helped more than 12,000 families in Atlantic Canada and New England.

"When your children are in the hospital, the last thing you want to be thinking about is how you can make the daily trips to see them," says Keri Tyner. "I really encourage anyone who has to drive to and from the hospital when their children need medical care to consider accessing Fuel the Care. It was a great help to us and we felt that by sharing our story, we would help make other families aware of the program."

Today, little Braydon and Shelby aren’t so little anymore. They are happy, thriving babies learning to crawl and express themselves. They particularly enjoy keeping their Mom and Dad very busy.