The family of conjoined twin sisters who died 19 days after they were born have been left mortified after they arrived at their gravesite to find cemetery staff had cleared the baby section of all mementos and tossed them in the rubbish. Faith and Hope Howie were dubbed the miracle twins when they were born on May 8 last year with one body and two faces due to an extremely rare condition known as disrosopus. They died in hospital less than a month after they were born and their parents, Simon Howie and Renee Young, laid them to rest at Pinegrove Memorial Park in Sydney's west. Scroll down for video . Faith and Hope Howie were dubbed the miracle twins when they were born on May 8 last year with one body and two faces due to an extremely rare condition known as disrosopus . Family members have visited the grave every week to leave mementos and flowers for Faith and Hope, but when Mr Howie and Ms Young arrived on Thursday they found the site completely bare. 'We took Renee's aunts to see the girls for the first time and we found everything had been stripped away,' Mr Howie told Daily Mail Australia. 'We were devastated and mortified. We've had a little shrine set up and we've been adding to it since the funeral. 'It's heartbreaking to know we've set this up and it has been treated like rubbish.' Faith and Hope were buried in a pink coffin and their family and friends released doves and pink and white balloons at their funeral. Their family and friends had built up a small memorial with pink and white statues, flowers, pebbles and toys over the past 11 months. When they arrived on Thursday, everything had been removed apart from a bunch of flowers. The twins were buried at Pinegrove Memorial Park in western Sydney after they died after just 19 days. Their family and friends had built a small shrine at their gravesite, which they have added to since the funeral . Family members have visited the grave every week to leave mementos and flowers for Faith and Hope, but when parents Simon Howie and Renee Young arrived on Thursday they found the site completely bare . Faith and Hope's parents confronted staff from the cemetery and were told they were supposed to have been notified they are would be cleaned. They found their daughters' belongings in nearby rubbish bins, but were only able to retrieve about 25 percent of their memorabilia. 'There was no warning, it was just manhandled and thrown in the rubbish. It was through the entire baby section.' The couple retrieved what they could find and returned later in the afternoon to see what else they could salvage - by then everything had been laid out on shelves for people to collect. 'We've gone down there and maintained it. We make sure either side of the girls is clipped with scissors to (workers) don't need to go near it,' Mr Howie said. He said there was no reason for the items to be taken away. Faith and Hope's parents, Simon Howie and Renee Young, confronted staff from the cemetery and were told they were supposed to have been notified they are would be cleaned . They found their daughters' belongings in nearby rubbish bins, but were only able to retrieve about 25 percent of their memorabilia (pictured) The couple retrieved what they could find and returned later in the afternoon to see what else they could salvage - by then everything had been laid out on shelves for people to collect . 'We pay the money to have the plot, they should be able to just take little mementos. It's just not fair on the families,' Mr Howie said. 'We got to those places to grieve - we're only one month out from the girls turning one... and it's been stripped naked. We have to start again. 'It obviously meant nothing to (the workers). I understand they have a job to do, but this is somebody else's loved one.' Pinegrove has offered an apology to the families affected. Faith and Hope were born with a rare condition called diprosopus, which means they share the same body and organs but have separate brains and two faces . The girls were transferred to Westmead Children's Hospital shortly after their birth on May 8 where they were closely monitored by doctors and nurses . They passed away just 19 days after they were born - their condition was so rare that only 35 cases have ever been recorded and none survived . 'The collection and storage of ornaments, especially photos, should have been handled much more respectfully and our goal is to improve it for the future,' Pinegrove's communication manager Karl Wolfenden said. 'We do understand the emotions of affected families. We have apologised to those we have spoken to and we have invited them to meet so we can find a solution that is agreeable to all. We are inviting other affected families to make contact also. 'Pinegrove is a fresh flower only and no ornamentation park but despite our rules and regulations we should have shown more respect to these items. 'We will discuss and seek an agreeable solution with families in the weeks ahead.' Faith and Hope's parents have set up an online petition to have the rules and regulations at cemetery's changed to ensure memorial items are not removed without being notified. You can find the petition here. Their family and friends had built up a small memorial with pink and white statues, flowers, pebbles and toys in the 11 months since Faith and Hope died . Faith and Hope were buried in a pink coffin and their family and friends released doves and pink and white balloons at their funeral .
Faith and Hope Howie were born with one body and two faces on May 8 . They tragically died in hospital just 19 days after they were born . Parents Simon Howie and Renee Young visit their grave at Pinegrove in western Sydney fortnightly . They arrived on Thursday to find the grave bare of all the girls' mementos . Staff had cleared entire baby section and thrown belongings in rubbish .