A best man speech by an Iowa groom’s autistic brother left wedding guests – as well as millions of viewers on social media – in tears and in stitches.
It was given by 23-year-old Sam Waldron for his brother, Jonah, and his new wife, Maddy.
At first, you can tell Sam is a bit nervous, as his hands are shaking, causing his speech to shake along with him. As he gets into it, he explains to the whole wedding that he has a.u.t.i.s.m, and that can make him a bit more scared than others to interact with people.
“But there is one person in the world I would do this for,” he said, as the crowd cheered him on. “Jonah Waldron. Check that. There are two people in the world I would do this for: Maddy and Jonah Waldron.”
He went on first to talk about Maddy, and just how much she means to him—and how much of a good sister she really is to him. “You have all the makings of a great sister,” he said. “Just like my sister Clara, my whole family loves you. When you are around, they light up.”
He went on to talk about even though he gets nervous around a lot of people, he never got nervous around her, because she “give[s him] peace.” Cue the awwwws (and the tissues!).
Then, he went on to talk about Jonah. And man, if we weren’t crying yet, we are now.
My relationship with Jonah is simply amazing, we hang out together and have fun,’ Sam said.
Sam was diagnosed with a.u.t.i.s.m when he was seven years old, and didn’t find intense social settings easy.
The two brothers went to the same school, and Jonah said: ‘He would come to see me during the school day, he would come for help with a subject or as a break.’
Caring big brother Jonah was even inspired to train as a Special Education Teacher to help other children with special needs.
Jonah and teacher Madison met at Wartburg College, and when Jonah introduced his new girlfriend to younger brother Sam, the two were immediate best friends.
The couple got engaged on a trip to Buena Vista, Colorado, and Jonah asked Sam to be his best man as soon as they got home.
He continued with more heartfelt notions, and of coruse some fun stories of he and his brother throughout the years. When Sam finally concluded the speech, he received a standing ovation.
The video received over three million views and more than 400,000 comments on his TikTok page.
Check out the entire speech below—and try not to cry!
Source:tiphero.com, dailymail.co.uk
