Paralyzed groom surprises his bride by standing and hugging her for their first dance as husband and wife
Paralyzed from the waist down in a car wreck in his senior year of high school, a young Louisiana man’s athletic career took a nosedive. Yet he overcame his physical obstacles to such an incredible degree that he competed in the 2012 Paralympic Games.
But Ryan Estep from Louisiana says “my greatest accomplishment of all” is making his wife, Chandler, fall “head over wheels” in love with him. “I had to almost beg her to finally go on a date,” Ryan said, “but once she finally agreed, it was all she wrote.”
It was a mutual friend named Mac who introduced the two of them. Within no time, they saw that they were the perfect match for each other.
To celebrate their one-year anniversary, Ryan booked a trip to Five Point Mountain, and he secretly packed an engagement ring along with his luggage. “I was so excited after hiding the ring from her for three months I proposed five minutes after we got there,” Ryan told The Epoch Times.
For their wedding day, on June 5, Ryan had another surprise planned for his bride and had help from his two more-than-willing friends.
At their dream wedding in June, Ryan Estep stood up, with the help of friends, to join his beautiful bride, Chandler Dendy Estep, in their first dance as husband and wife.
Unbeknown to Chandler, Ryan had yet another odds-defying trick up his sleeve; with the help of two friends, he planned to stand and embrace his bride for their very first dance as husband and wife.
After some funny fails behind the scenes, the trio worked out the best way to strap each of Ryan’s legs to one of his friend’s legs so that they could walk as one. Despite all their practice, “everything changed when it was game time,” Ryan said.
The newlyweds, who have moving footage of the special moment to treasure forever, plan to bring “a couple little athletes” into their family in the future.
When asked by The Epoch Times what they love most about each other, Ryan cited Chandler’s boundless compassion. Chandler hailed her husband as “the greatest man” she has ever met.
Ryan considers the accident as “a strong wake-up call.” It made him leave behind his days of being a competitive football captain and take up fencing, which eventually took him to the 2012 Paralympic Games.
Additionally, Ryan says the accident also made him treat people better and value them in a way he did not before. He also works as a motivational speaker and says one’s mindset is what can hold them back or push them forward. “If you think you can, or you can’t, either way, you’re right,” he said. “All of the accolades and accomplishments were only possible because of my mindset: to continue to accept the challenge.”
Now that he is a married man, he revealed that he has plans of raising “a couple little athletes” with Chandler.
When Ryan was asked what he loves most about Chandler, he said it is her boundless compassion. And when Chandler was asked the same, she said he was “the greatest man” she has ever crossed paths with.
A word of advice she gave others was: “Accept the unexpected and embrace happiness.”
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Source:
explore.newsner.com, theepochtimes.com
