An incredible story yet again!! Jennifer and Rob, an engaged couple from Minnesota whom almost did not see the day of their wedding. Jennifer’s lungs were declining rapidly and was in desperate need of a lung transplant. For a year she was on oxygen and without the transplant the doctors told her she wasn’t going to make it.
Her fiance Rob was there during the difficult time and with Jennifer through every step of the way. Jennifer was fortunate to receive a lung transplant from a young woman who died too soon named Lacey. When I met with the couple I could instantly feel the love between the two and their family. In this wedding I really felt that the most appropriate word was Breath, after this whole journey Jennifer and Rob have been through, it was my turn to create the wedding of their dreams.
Jennifer has always dreamt of an elegant and fairytale wedding with twinkling lights. She enjoys fireflies, glow, and sparkle. Check out how my partners at Darice helped to create some fairytale magic and sparkle in the pictures below you’ll see the wedding taking place at the Union Depot, located in St. Paul, Minnesota. We had stunning table tops with sparking decor everywhere, deep purples, rose gold, and pieces of art to incorporate her vision. Baby’s breath representing our word Breath and an abundance of flowers fit for a princess. By the way did you notice how many purple roses there were? To represent cystic fibrosis, we integrated the color and number 65 into the wedding. The “65 Roses” story as was said during the show was because when a 4 year old child heard of the term, Cystic fibrosis, he pronounced the name of the disease “65 Roses.” So we had 6,500 purple roses at the wedding to represent her story from our sponsors at Passion Growers.
This ceremony was unforgettable and different. We had the ceremony incorporated into the celebration. I wanted Jennifer and Rob to literally be surrounded and celebrated by the people they love, so I wanted her to feel like she was walking away from the past and step forward into this new life with her husband-to-be during the ceremony. Jennifer floated down the aisle in my gown called Lacey named after her organ donor. The Lacey gown is inspired by the classical elegance of the 1950’s bridal fashion with a touch of modern design which you can view here. I wanted her to feel like a princess with glowing fireflies as she walks. This is a celebration and journey of love and a second chance at life.
To enlighten the mood, after their ceremony the kids surprised Rob with a short story to thank him for being the rock in their family. What an emotional and heartfelt surprise it was. But that wasn’t the only surprise. The family was granted a trip to Aruba on behalf of Divi Aruba to start their new chapter together as a family. Oh my gosh, after 4 back to back weddings I think I could definitely use a vacation to Aruba, Ha! Just Kidding!!!
From this episode Jennifer has definitely reminded me on a few things. Take a deep breath…Dance…Rejoice…Celebrate life and second chances. -David
