Ben and Heather met in February of 2011. They were working on a project together for Ben’s company and found themselves trapped in a break room all day waiting out a snowstorm. As the hours passed and they chatted and got to know each other, they knew they had found something special. They two began dating immediately and were married four months later.

We are thrilled to be granting this wish for Ben and Heather. We’ve joined forces with our new friend, Morgan Floyd of Hooch and Honey and have been so touched by the incredible effort she has put into making this wish so special. Morgan lined up an amazing team of wish granters and we’re so excited to see it all unfold.

Less than a year ago, Ben began experiencing a variety of cold and allergy symptoms that wouldn’t go away. As the symptoms began to worsen, he found himself coughing up blood. He made an appointment with his doctor and after undergoing a series of tests, was sadly diagnosed with lung cancer.

Stephanie and Ronnie first met in 2007 at a mutual friend’s house. As the two describe it, it was love at first site. They fell for each other immediately and moved in together the following week. Three years later, they had a baby boy. While they had their ups and downs, like all couples, Stephanie and Ronnie’s love continued to grow and flurish throughout the years.

In 2014, Ronnie’s life took a drastic turn when he inexplicably collapsed on the floor of his apartment. Unbeknownst to him, he was suffering from a softball sized tumor on the left side of his brain. Ronnie immediately underwent a complicated brain surgery. While the surgeon was able to remove 98% of the tumor, the tests were devastating. He was diagnosed with brain cancer.

In February of 2020, however, he suffered a grand mal seizure while commuting on a bus home from work. He had to be resuscitated and spent the next week in a coma. Ronnie’s tests revealed the worst. His cancer had returned and his tumor had multiplied. Although he fought with all he had, Ronnie lost his battle with cancer just four days after our wish. Our hearts go out to Stephanie and Rj as they face life without him.

Emil and Halie’s have somewhat of a storybook love story. They first saw each other two years ago from across the room at their local cancer hospital. Emil has been struggling with sickle cell anemia since birth and was at the hospital to receive treatment, while Halie was experiencing some health issues of her own and was there to meet with a doctor. While Emil had planned to introduce himself to her after his appointment, he was disappointed to discover that she had already left. As fate would have it, the two matched on a dating app that very night!

Sadly, sickle cell is an uncurable disease and one that causes tremendous pain, fatigue, frequent hospitalizations, routine blood infusions and often, surgery. In Emil’s case, the disease has advanced considerably over the years, causing complications that will require a him to have a hip and shoulder replacement. Despite putting on a brave face and never complaining, Emil fights constant exhaustion and pain and has spent several weeks in the hospital already this year.

We were honored to grant Emil and Halie’s wish for a wedding and loved getting to know them throughout the process. From start to finish, the day was filled with love, laughter and beauty.

Tomorrow, on January 12, 2021, Stephanie and Ronnie will gather before their loved ones to commit their lives to one another. While we had hoped to have this wish later this week at the Great Lakes Culinary Center, Ronnie’s as suffered some significant health setbacks in his battle with brain cancer in the past weeks, forcing us to move the wish to Ronnie and Stephanie’s home.

We have been so moved by this beautiful couple and are honored to grant their wish for a wedding. Our amazing planner has secured an incredible crew of wish granters, and while they all will not be able to attend due to our last minute change of plans and Ronnie’s health, we wanted to publicly thank and celebrate them.

Sheila and Stevans first met in high school. They started dating immediately and the rest is history. In 2018, Sheila started experiencing a lot of unexplained sickness. She had been working long hours at a law firm at the time and started missing a lot of work and unexpectedly lost hearing in one of her ears. After months of tests and procedures, an MRI revealed a rare, cancerous tumor at the base of her skull. She underwent two complicated surgeries to have the tumor removed, followed by a rigorous chemotherapy and radiation plan. While the surgery was overall successful, 30 % of the tumor remains. Sheila has had a very hard road to recovery and is still struggling with the lasting impacts of her illness.

We were honored to grant this sweet couple their wish for a wedding. Despite the many COVID related obstacles that we faced, our incredible team of wish granters went above and beyond to provide Sheila and Stevans with the wedding of their dreams.

On October 15, 2020, Laura and Keith gathered with a few friends and family to renew their vows on the gorgeous grounds of Stone Tower Winery in Leesburg, VA. From start to finish, the day was filled with sunshine, laughter, music and love.

Keith and Laura first met in 1990 when a mutual friend introduced them. They hit it off immediately and started dating. It wasn’t long before things became serious. They moved to Florida together and were married soon after. The couple spent the next twenty years expanding their family, growing their careers and seeking new adventures. In 2018, their lives took an unexpected turn. Keith had begun experiencing some troubling health concerns, including rapid weight loss and food regurgitation. He went to his doctor to get checked out and was sadly diagnosed with stage 3 esophageal cancer.

We are eternally grateful for all of the incredible wish granters who made this day possible. We know that it’s been very difficult year for everyone and are humbled by the generosity of our wish granters.

Emil and Halie’s love story began just over two and a half years ago when they first saw each other across the room at their local cancer hospital. Emil has been struggling with sickle cell anemia since birth and was at the hospital to receive treatment. As fate would have it, the two matched on a dating app that very night and quickly fell in love.

Sadly, sickle cell is an uncurable disease and one that causes tremendous pain, fatigue, frequent hospitalizations, routine blood infusions and often, surgery. In Emil’s case, the disease has advanced considerably over the years, causing complications that will require a him to have a hip and shoulder replacement. Despite putting on a brave face and never complaining, Emil fights constant exhaustion and pain and has spent several weeks in the hospital already this year.

We were incredibly touched by Emil and Halie’s journey and are in awe of the ways in which they have cared for each other and persevered through Emil’s illness. We’re thrilled to grant them this wish for a wedding and hope that their story serves as a beacon of hope for others.

On September 17, 2020, Hillary and Mike gathered with family friends on a gorgeous, sun-soaked Austin day to renew their vows at the beautiful Mercury Hall. From start to finish, the day was punctuated with love, light and laughter.

As always, our wishes would not be possible without the generosity of so many wonderful people. We cannot thank our team of wish granters enough – especially during these challenging times – for their creativity, hard work and beautiful hearts. It was most certainly a day to remember.

Sheila and Stevans first started dating in high school. They fell for each other immediately and ended up dating for the rest of high school and all throughout college. Once Sheila moved back to Miami, they moved in together and started their careers.

In 2018, Sheila was working as a paralegal for a law firm. She was working a lot of long, stressful hours and started getting sick frequently. Although many of her symptoms could be easily explained away as a bad cold, she was missing a lot of work and lost hearing in of one of her ears. Months of tests and specialist visits finally revealed a devastating diagnosis. An MRI revealed a rare cancerous tumor at the base of her skull. She endured 2 complicated surgeries to have the tumor removed, followed by chemotherapy, radiation and months of therapy.

We’ve loved this couple since the minute we met them and cannot wait to grant their wish for a wedding.

Great news! We were finally able to rescheduled Keith and Laura’s wish for October 15, 2020. We have truly loved getting to know this wonderful couple and cannot wait to grant their wish for a much-deserved vow renewal. We feel incredibly fortunate to have team up with Jessica Ashely of Jessica Ashley Events and Rebecca Hicks of Pen to Paper Events and have already fallen head over heels for the unbelievable team of wish granters that she had lined up.