A couple got married in a hastily-arranged wedding ceremony after learning their eight-year-old son has just four weeks to live.
Hannah Colishaw, 33, and Henry Matthews, 30, from Hertfordshire, had planned to get hitched next summer with sons Brandon, 12, Ethan, eight, and Jack, four, in attendance.
But heartbreakingly, the mum and dad were forced to move their wedding forward when they got the devastating news that eight-year-old Ethan had just a month to live.
Doctors told them that a deadly brain tumour that Ethan had previously been successfully treated for had returned and spread to his spine.
So with the help of family and friends, they quickly arranged their nuptials so that Ethan could take part in the big day.
The couple got married in St Mary’s Church in an emotional ceremony attended by loved ones.
And Ethan, looking dapper in a waistcoat, was centre stage as his parents exchanged their vows.
He sat in a wheelchair with a Man Utd FC pillow for comfort during the ceremony.
Hannah, who had Ethan from a previous relationship, said: ‘The whole community have come together and we’ve been inundated with offers from everyone.
‘My work colleague has been incredible and organised so much.
‘Ethan woke me up in the middle of the night saying “you’re getting married tomorrow!”
‘He’s been so excited. It’s been amazing.’
Henry, a landscape gardener, added: ‘We were supposed to get married sometime in the summer next year, but after the news, we obviously had to bring it forward.
‘We saw the vicar the day after the news at the hospital and he’s been great.
‘I think one of the hardest aspects to sort out was a wedding license but he managed to pull it off in just a week.
Ethan was first diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2016. Following an operation and chemotherapy, he was given the all-clear in January 2017.
But in January last year, the couple were given the devastating blow that the cancer had returned and was in his head and spine.
Ethan had radiotherapy and an operation to remove 96% of the cancer from his spine but last week they received the news that the cancer is terminal and that Ethan has four weeks left to live.
Hannah added: ‘We sort of knew anyway because he was getting worse but it’s still a shock.
‘He deteriorated so quickly within three months. I think he knows.’
But they got their special day which saw Ethan smiling and laughing as he posed for photos.
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source https://metro.co.uk/2019/11/28/couple-speed-up-their-wedding-plans-after-learning-eight-year-old-son-has-four-weeks-to-live-11232466/
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