Love Is In The Air As Wish Upon A Wedding Announces Plans To Grant Area Couple Their Dream Wedding

Feb. 15, 2011 - PRLog -- (ST. LOUIS, MO) – It began with a wink, a poke, and a flirty on-line message. It progressed to dinner, a game of putt-putt golf and hours spent bowling, watching movies and playing cards with friends. He was always there for her, to open the car door, the door to the restaurant or just to be a shoulder to lean on. She was cautious but deeply attracted to his sweet personality and his passion for family. The relationship blossomed. Life was good for this young couple.

A year later a bouncing baby girl was born to them. Now they were a family. Mommy, daddy and baby Madison. And although they struggled at times to make ends meet, their love for each other matured and saw them through. Together, Melissa and Jason could conquer anything, especially with the help and support of their family and friends. “It didn’t matter what happened,” Melissa said. “We always found our way back to each other. I always knew that things would work out.”

But neither Melissa nor Jason could ever have envisioned the test that fate had in store. In August 2010, Jason was diagnosed with a Glioblastoma Multiforme, the most aggressive and most malignant form of brain cancer. It was stage four. Now Melissa would need to always be there for Jason, as they prepared for the biggest challenge yet.

Since October 2010, Jason has suffered two major seizures and undergone two craniotomies. He has completed six weeks of radiation and chemotherapy. Oncologists are discussing further treatment options, including continued radiation and chemotherapy. Together, Jason and Melissa are fighting a courageous battle.

“Even though the statistics are ugly and the prognosis is grim, I do not allow it to affect the way I live my life,” Jason said. “I plan on living and loving to the fullest. I want to share my life, no matter how much time I have, with Melissa and our daughter. I constantly tell her that she can’t get rid of me that easily and she has decades more of my stubbornness to look forward to.”

This stubbornness and optimism is what Melissa admires the most. On New Year’s Eve, while others in his situation might be looking at the upcoming year as a time of turmoil, Jason took a different angle. He anticipated a happy sequence of events, one in which the woman he loved, the mother of his daughter, and the soul mate who had been by his side for the past three years and through the rocky times of the past four months, would become his wife.  

At dinner that evening with his family Jason blissfully proposed. “When he asked for the dessert tray to be brought, he held my hand,” Melissa said. “The ring was in a box and the restaurant had decorated the plate it was on. I was really surprised.” Jason popped the question and Melissa answered “yes.”

Now when they look into the year 2011, they only see their future together. The medical treatments, doctors’ appointments, and hospital stays will still be there. But they will be overshadowed by the love this coupled has for each other, the love they have for their daughter, the joy of their wedding day, and their commitment to making it through whatever fate may bring, together, as husband and wife.

The wedding will be produced by the St. Louis Chapter of Wish Upon a Wedding, the world's first nonprofit wish granting organization, providing weddings and vow renewals to couples facing terminal illness and serious life altering circumstances, regardless of sexual orientation, at destinations across the United States. Jason recently heard about the organization from a friend. The wedding will be the second wish granted by the chapter in the St. Louis area.

Local event planner Lacy Branch, who serves as board president, leads the chapter, which is one of 16 nationwide. “We are thrilled to be able to give this couple, who has been through so much together, the beautiful wedding day they deserve,” said Branch. “If a patient’s last wish is to marry the significant other who has stood by them, through their most difficult and trying times, Wish Upon a Wedding does whatever it takes to make that dream come true. Such is the case with this amazing young couple.”

The wedding will be coordinated by volunteer “wish granters” all of whom are members of the wedding industry. Each will donate their various skill sets to produce the wedding. These professionals include invitation designers, wedding coordinators, photographers, florists, caterers and a myriad of other wedding resources, all of whom will come together to create the perfect setting and ceremony for the couple.
To receive a wish, couples must be over the age of 18 and each must be a legal citizen of the United States. The timing, size and location of the event is determined by the health status of the wish recipient. The St. Louis chapter grants wishes to deserving couples living within 300 miles of St. Louis area.

About Wish Upon a Wedding
Wish Upon a Wedding is the world's first nonprofit wish granting organization, providing weddings and vow renewals to couples facing terminal illness and serious life altering circumstances, regardless of sexual orientation, at destinations across the United States. Wedding planner Liz Guthrie of San Jose, CA, founded Wish Upon a Wedding in January 2010 to celebrate the courage, determination and spirit of these couples by granting dream-wedding wishes, with the intention that chosen recipients will inspire others facing similar situations. Wish Upon a Wedding is organized exclusively for charitable purposes, including for such purposes, the making of distributions to organizations that qualify as exempt organizations under Section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code.

ATTENTION MEDIA:
Photo and interview opportunities are available with the Wish Recipients. Please contact Annemarie Schumacher at Schumacher Creative, 314-265-5237 or annemarie@schumachercreative.com to arrange.

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Schumacher Creative is a boutique public relations, strategic communications and cause marketing agency.