The mum of two young children who tragically died in a horror car crash is expecting another child - with the due date on her late daughter's birthday. Four-year-old Gracie-Ann Lucas and her three-year-old brother Jayden-Lee Lucas were killed by an intoxicated van driver who was travelling home from a friend's birthday party.
Mum Rhiannon Lucas and her partner were with the two youngsters in the car when the van smashed into them the M4 in February, Wales Online reports. Both siblings, also known by the surname Wheaton, were rushed to hospital but tragically died with just days of each other, while Rhiannon also suffered serious injuries.
A court was later told that van driver Martin Newman had alcohol and drugs in his system when he collided into the stationary vehicle on the M4 westbound carriageway between junctions 28 and 29 in Newport. The 41-year-old had downed 10 cans of Strongbow and taken cocaine after returning to his hotel room from the night out with colleagues and was more than twice the drink-driving limit.
At a sentencing hearing Newman – who admitted two counts of causing death by dangerous driving, and one of causing serious injury to the children's mother by dangerous driving, and charges of drink-driving and drug-driving – was jailed for nine years and four months. He will serve just over four years in custody. The children's family, from Tredegar , had appealed this sentence, however, it was denied.
Now Rhiannon and her partner Adam Saunders - who was a stepfather to Jayden and Gracie - have announced they are expecting a child. Miraculously, the child's due date has been announced as April 10, 2023, what would have been Gracie-Ann's sixth birthday.
Adam and Rhiannon have been in a relationship for just over 22 months and this will be Adam's first child and Rhiannon's third. He said that they found out about the pregnancy when Rhiannon was around eight weeks and were told about the incredible due date at the 12-week scan.
Adam, 27, who works in the call centre industry, has said the pregnancy is keeping the pair "sane". He said: "After everything we have been through, this is something to keep us sane and positive and happy to look forward to now.
"Obviously, we will never forget Jayden and Gracie but it's something we don't have to always dwell on and always have sad moments, we have happy memories to look back on. This [the pregnancy] is something now for us to focus on and look forward to. It's something lovely to happen to us after everything that has happened."
Adam said that when he was told about the due date and realised its significance, he was "gobsmacked" and thinks it is a message from the children. He said: "It's like fate. For the due date to be on Gracie's birthday, it's like the kids were sending us a message. I was hands in my face gobsmacked. I was speechless.
"For my first child and Rhiannon's third, to be due on Gracie's birthday, well it's incredible. It's a special child." Given it's only just over seven months since the children's tragic death, Adam said there were a lot of emotions involved in the pregnancy, especially for mum Rhiannon who is still battling her own injuries.
"Emotions are definitely high but there have always been smiles on our faces since we found out, we're always talking about it, always on our mind. Anything we do talk about in terms of Gracie and Jayden is obviously still very emotional but we talk about them in a happy way, we remember positive memories. They're happy memories, we're smiling when we talk about them."
The young siblings had a joint funeral on March 21 in which the emotional service saw the children's favourite cartoon characters lead the procession, and doves released into the air as hundreds gathered on the streets to mourn their tragic death.
"Me and Rhiannon go up the graveside quite frequently," said Adam, "And I've got to be honest the first time we went to the grave after we found out it was like announcing the news to them that they're having a brother or sister.
"Although they are gone they're still with us in our hearts and as far as we are concerned, Gracie and Jayden are having a little brother or sister. We did get emotional then. It was like we were telling them the news, without being able to physically tell them the news."
"But we know they are looking down on us and knew what we told them. And now they'll certainly have some involvement. They're making sure they are involved and sending a message with the due date on Gracie's birthday. And now they'll certainly have some involvement. This is something lovely and exciting for us all now."
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