Their whirlwind romance turned to an engagement in just six months and the Miners Rest couple was married in February 2010.

Leaving behind a home decorated with love letters to each other, the devoted parents were driving to their first night away since the birth of their son Aidan.

It was that journey which turned to tragedy on Saturday morning.

With her sister in a serious but stable condition after emergency surgery in The Alfred hospital in Melbourne, Stacey Daciw yesterday called Jason “a devoted father and husband.”

“They were inseparable, they would hold hands everywhere and they were never apart,” she said.

The 26-year-old fitter and turner lived in Ballarat his whole life, keeping birds as a hobby and taking his son to the hardware store on Saturday mornings.

Rhiannon, who works at Ballarat Health Services, is expected to need significant rehabilitation for injuries to her arms and legs and will remain in hospital for the foreseeable future.

Ms Daciw said her sister and nephew would appreciate assistance from the Ballarat community.

“Aidan is with my mum and my stepdad now and Rhiannon still has too much medication to know the full extent of what has happened,” she said.

The family has set up a fund for donations and thanked the police and emergency service personnel who attended the accident.

A fund to support Rhiannon and Aidan has been established at the National Australia Bank.