A HEARTBROKEN new dad has paid tribute to his bride-to-be after she died following a caesarean operation to deliver their twin boys.

Matt Whittaker’s life has been turned upside down after the death of his beloved fiancée Rachael Galloway.

Tragically, Rachael, 36, did not survive the procedure but she held on long enough to ensure her twin boys – Noah and Abel - arrived safe and sound into the world.

Just a week before, Rachael had become engaged to her partner and was on the cusp of her happily ever after.

Matt described Rachael as ‘the best person I ever met’.

“She made the world a better place,” he said. “Not just because she was smart, funny, driven, beautiful, caring, patient, and so many other things, but because she made the people around her better.

“She saw and brought out the best in people, and I am living proof that she could see what nobody else could. It is now my responsibility to be the man she saw and thought should start a family with her. I have to make her proud and ensure our boys grow up to be the gentlemen she would have been proud of.”

She met her fiancé between lockdowns in 2020 through the dating app Bumble and hit it off.

Matt had a smallholding of animals and Rachael moved from her job at medical equipment company Anetic Aid over to Warton in north Lancashire to be Matt's dad's PA.

She also created New Oak Admin and did work for major clients such as Kendal Calling.

She took a hand in Matt's smallholding – Green Touch Landscapes - and the pair took on Matt's parents' pub – The Malt Shovel Inn in Warton - which Rachael excelled at.

Within weeks, she was running the social media, building a website, organising photography and designing a new menu.It was not long after that Rachael found out she was pregnant.

Matt said: "In the last few months, we have been smashing life. While carrying twins, we had a record turnover in both businesses, and I was incredibly proud of her.

"We had finally settled on a dream—where we wanted our boys to grow up, and how we wanted them to grow up. We found out a lot about each other in the last few months. Nothing forces a conversation quite like staring down the barrel of twins.

"We had a plan—a loose and very ambitious plan—but we had one, and if the last couple of years have taught me anything, it was that we would achieve it!"

On Rachael’s birthday, in the last few weeks of her pregnancy, the mum had to go to the hospital for a scan where she was told that the boys' weights had diverged and the hospital was concerned as she had high blood pressure.

(Image: Gala PR)

Rachael had expressed that she had wanted to get away so Matt arranged a stay at a friend's cottage where they could be off grid but still near a hospital.

Matt added: "On the Friday, we were going to finish work, go to the cottage, maybe get a curry, and then go and watch the first band that Rachael had booked—or so she thought.

"I had organised for my friend to set up a table, chairs, and some non-alcoholic prosecco at the edge of the lake to surprise her.

"We then sat on the chairs, chatting and watching our dog Ruby splashing around in the water. I got Ruby (the couple’s German Shepherd dog) to jump in to distract Rachael, and I got down on one knee. She said yes, and then, 10 minutes later, on cue, my friend arrived with the curries we had ordered and a serving table.

(Image: Gala PR)

"We ate our meal, and I remember sitting there, just saying to Rachael, 'Can you believe that this is our life? Life really couldn’t get any better.”

"We then went to watch the band so Rachael could show off her ring, and we returned to our quaint little cottage.

On the Monday when they returned, Matt was at work when Rachael told him she had to go to hospital with a chance might have to get C-Section that night.

Whilst there, the couple were told the procedure took place two weeks earlier than planned.

The procedure went ahead at the new date and Rachael gave birth to two beautiful twin boys before she passed.

Matt said: "We went in, and Rach was a star. Though she was nervous as hell, she was strong as hell and kept a brave face throughout—right until the boys were born.

"Then there were tears of joy, seeing them, knowing they were healthy, and seeing me give Noah his first feed.

"She was so happy, so proud, so full of love. She had the world in her eyes when she looked at our boys. It’s a shame that was the last time she cast her eyes on them, but I hope she is still watching over them."

Rachael's family have described how she was passionate about fitness and was always planning her next hike. She was also a devoted Liverpool supporter.

She grew up in Rochdale with her mum Susan, father Graham, and older brother Daniel Galloway.

Dan said: "Rachael’s mother passed away when she was 17, and Rachael was always vocal about living a life that her mum would be proud of.

"We were like any brother and sister: me telling her to turn her Spice Girls CD down so I could listen to my music, and her mocking my lack of fashion sense.

"From an early age, she was more than capable of giving as good as she got! It’s no surprise to me that she grew up to be the strong, determined, hilarious, and well-liked woman that she did."

Now, the couple's family and friends have created a fundraiser to support Matt in the immediate future.

As Matt is self-employed, it's unlikely he will be able to work for the next few years.

“I’m not going to lie—I have been left in a bit of a tight spot,” he said.

“I am now responsible for our twin boys, Noah and Abel, Ruby, two pygmy goats, two ewes, three lambs, two pigs, two geese, three ducks, ten chickens, the smallholding (fish, veg, etc.), Green Touch Landscapes, The Malt Shovel (voluntary), and the dreams we shared.

“She has taught me how little I know, but also given me the greatest gift a man could ever receive—a legacy. We built it together, but I must maintain and grow it so I can give our boys the life we had planned for them. I’m not 100% sure how I’m going to do it, but failure is not an option. I have a plan for the next few months and am accepting all the help I can get and will need. My life has been torn apart on every single level, but I will make her proud.”

Visit here to donate to the Go Fund Me page.