DUBBO has proven a haven for Ashley and Karley Townend to raise their two daughters after they encountered discrimination and prejudice in the big smoke.
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Ashley and Karley feel right at home in Dubbo, where one day they hope to be able to marry.
Marriage equality is on their minds and in their hearts as they praise the community for its warm welcome.
Full-time mother Ashley, 27, and automotive parts interpreter Karley, 26, went to school together in Coolah.
In 2007 they set up house in Sydney where Ashley became pregnant and the decision was taken to return to family in Dubbo.
The couple welcomed now three-year-old daughter Hayley into the world at Dubbo Hospital with "Mummy" Ashley and "Mumma" Karley treated by staff with the utmost respect.
"When we had Hayley I was put in ICU for two days so Karley went to the special care unit and looked after Hayley," Ashley said.
"They treated her like she was Hayley's birth mother."
On returning to Sydney the couple was shocked and offended when Hayley fell ill and the hospital staff who treated her wouldn't acknowledge Karley.
The couple faced aggressive questioning about who was Hayley's "real mother".
"I told them we both are," Ashley said. "We both are on her birth certificate, we conceived her together, we chose our donor together."
Ashley said her partner was given the cold shoulder by doctors and staff.
"We weren't treated very well," Ashley told the Daily Liberal.
"All the hospital staff and the doctors treated Karley like she wasn't a parent to Hayley."
When Ashley fell pregnant again with now six-month-old Lucy, the Townend family opted to resettled in Dubbo where it feels "accepted".
"We came back here and all the nurses in maternity were amazing with both of us," Ashley said.
"We even named Lucy after one of the midwives."
Ashley and Karley have found the community to be considerate of their needs and feelings, including a doctor's receptionist who once asked for the name of Lucy's father.
"I said she doesn't have a father, she has two mums," Ashley said.
The receptionist apologised and told the couple that in the future she would be asking for "parents' names".
In 2009 Ashley and Karley took part in a commitment ceremony in Sydney in front of devoted family and close friends.
Hayley and Lucy are the main reasons their mothers want to go a significant step further and marry.
"We want them to know that we are as committed as a couple as any other mother and father," Ashley said.
"We want them to know that we love each other as much as we love them."