When Julie Duncan learned she would be having twins, she didn’t know much about the Ronald McDonald House. She had seen the donation boxes inside McDonald’s restaurants, but she never dreamed that she would end up calling the House her “home-away-from-home.”

When she was 13 weeks pregnant, doctors discovered that she had developed Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome (TTTS), meaning one baby was receiving more nutrients and growing, while the other was not. Julie and her husband, Joe, traveled from their hometown of Indianapolis to Cincinnati for fetoscopic laser surgery to treat the condition. At the time, Julie was just 18 weeks pregnant and would need bed rest for the remainder of her pregnancy.

However, seven weeks later, while she was in St. Louis visiting family, Julie suffered a placental eruption in the 26th week of her pregnancy. On December 20, 2013, Julie was rushed to Mercy Hospital where doctors performed an emergency C-section. Because the babies were so premature, they were immediately taken to the NICU, and because Julie lost so much blood, she was hospitalized for 6 days. It would be days before she would be able to see her twin daughters, Abi and Grace.

It was a terrifying time for Julie and Joe. When Abi was born, she weighed 2 pounds, while Grace weighed just 1 pound, 9 ounces and also suffered a brain bleed.

“They were so critical, we didn’t know if they were going to make it,” Julie remembers.

Once she was able to leave the hospital, Julie moved into our West County Ronald McDonald House with her 18-month-old daughter, Jessica. Since the House is located on the campus of Mercy Children’s Hospital, Julie and Jessica were never more than a few minutes from the NICU. Joe returned home during the week to Indianapolis, where he works as a surgeon, but he made the trip back to St. Louis every weekend to see his girls.

According to Julie, staying at the Ronald McDonald House helped her cope with the heartache and stress of having two sick children while being hours away from her husband and hometown. She says the House is not just a place to stay – it’s a true community where she has met lifelong friends, something no hotel or amount of money could provide.

“It’s nice to be able to talk to other people who understand,” says Julie. “It helped put things in perspective, and they helped me put on a happy face after long days at the hospital.”

Without the support of other families who are in similar situations, the past three months would have been incredibly difficult for Julie, as well as Joe, who was away during the week. During that time, Grace had endured brain surgery, two bowel obstruction surgeries, and another operation to repair a hiatal hernia.

Julie was happy to report that Abi was released in late March from the hospital and joined Jessica and her mother at the Ronald McDonald House. However, Grace still had a long road ahead and spent a few more months in the hospital. During that time, Julie continued to find comfort and care through RMHC St. Louis.

When Julie, Jessica, Abi and Grace got back home to Indianapolis, Julie planned to volunteer at the local Ronald McDonald House.

“I want to give back because it’s helped us so much,” she says. “This has been the greatest blessing. It feels like home.”