On Sunday, Robin and Michael Hamby completed birth certificates for twin boys that never made it home from the hospital. In a matter of hours, the Hambys celebrated the birth of conjoined twins, then said goodbye.
Now, the grieving parents have one request.
“I’d love to fill the church up,” Michael Hamby said in a Facebook video.
Conjoined twins Asa and Eli survived a day before their deaths Friday. Late Sunday, the Hambys, from Ladonia, Ala., thanked the thousands of people who have followed their story of a rare pregnancy and little boys who beat the odds by being born.
A public memorial service will be held Thursday at 6 p.m. at Ladonia Baptist Church, Michael Hamby said. The church, which seats 800, opened its doors to the Hambys, and a local funeral home is also assisting with arrangements. The boys will be cremated, Hamby said.
The Hambys returned Sunday to their Ladonia, home, where Robin continues to recover from the delivery. The couple says it has been overwhelmed by the events of the past week.
“We’re both just emotionally and physically tired,” Michael Hamby said.
The Hambys have said they relied on their faith throughout the pregnancy, and remained hopeful the boys could beat the odds. Born at 37 weeks, Asa and Eli shared a torso, arms and legs. But their heart was not strong enough for them to survive.
Conjoined twins occur once every 200,000 live births, but between 40 and 60 percent arrive stillborn, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. Being joined side-by-side made the Hamby twins even rarer, a condition known as dicephalic parapagus.
Michael Hamby said the couple’s faith hasn’t wavered.
“God is good,” Hamby said. “Even through this hardship, God is good, and I give him all the glory … he allowed a moment for us to see them, and he didn’t have to give that to me, but he did.”
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