Wish Upon A Wedding

Nonprofit Group Grants Wedding Wishes

By: Tonya Abeln

Published On: December 28, 2011

Once upon a time, not too long ago, a wedding planner name Liz Guthrie organized a San Francisco wedding giveaway contest. Of the 350 couples who entered, one stood out as being most desperately in need of a granted wish: Vanessa, who had recently been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, and Mike, an Air Force Officer who was deployed in Iraq. After granting Vanessa and Mike’s wish for a dream wedding, Liz was so inspired that she decided she would spread hope and grant wishes far and wide, to all couples like Liz and Mike, who hold dear the promise of eternal love but are too overwhelmed by life-threatening illnesses to plan a wedding.

The result of Liz Guthrie’s efforts is the nonprofit organization Wish Upon A Wedding. Since Vanessa and Mike’s May 2010 wedding, 21 Wish Upon a Wedding chapters have launched across the country, with 8 more planned for 2012, including Kentucky, which is establishing a chapter based in Louisville! The Kentucky chapter is currently looking for their first wedding wish to grant. To apply, to recommend someone, or to find out how you can help grant a dream wedding for couples facing terminal illness or other serious life-altering circumstances, visit Wishuponawedding.org/Kentucky-chapter.

Alyssa & John

In July 2011, the couple that met while working at the same movie theater celebrated a surprise Hollywood ending when their courtship had seemed more like tragedy than fantasy. In 2009, Jon had a car accident as a result of an undetected brain tumor. He was diagnosed with incurable brain cancer that seemed to return after every surgery. He says, “I cannot turn my back on fate, just face it head on.”

Janice & Cory

Indianapolis granted their first wish in April 2011 to a groom suffering from Diabetic Retinopathy with Macular Edema. Doctors warned him that he would be blind by the end of the year and his wish was to see his bride walk down the aisle. A team of experts used up-lighting for the aisle and strong bursts of orange and purple, bright colors he could see well. Janice chose a special scent so Corey would always associate it with their dream wedding day.

Florence & Michael

When Florence was diagnosed with breast cancer, Michael stayed by her side through chemotherapy and a double mastectomy. The two met and fell in love as she rode the bus he drove in San Francisco, but wedding plans were put on hold while they paid medical bills. A wedding planner, inspired by their story submitted the couple as the very first wedding wish ever granted. Surrounded by bridesmaids dressed in pink to honor her fight against breast cancer, they started their life together by dancing to "At Last".

Linae & David

Linae and David met online and found they had more in common than just looking for love. David is a lymphoma survivor and Linae had a large thymic mass in her chest as the result of a vaso spastic stroke. After 6 years of life-threatening health issues, Linae says that her condition only helps her to relate to her patients as a nurse. Amid bold colors of red and burgundy in Canton, Ohio, the two committed to loving each other through sickness and health.