"I just came here as a regular patient, and I'm walking out as a princess," Kristine Nepomuceno said as she sat in her stunning wedding gown. "I'm having my fairy-tale wedding even though I'm in a wheelchair."
Nepomuceno's story is one that proves true love can overcome anything, even an unexpected visit to the hospital.
The glowing bride and her new husband put the vow "in sickness and in health" to the test Saturday afternoon, during a very special wedding ceremony at St. Thomas Hospital.
Back in 2009, Nepomuceno received a kidney transplant at the Nashville hospital. And due to some health issues, she went to the emergency room Friday night. Her wedding was scheduled for the following day.
"I couldn't get up out of bed and walk by myself so I wanted to go to the ER to see what they could do," she explained. "I honestly thought they would discharge me by 10 a.m. so I could make it to the church by 3 p.m."
Unfortunately, doctors told her she needed to stay awhile longer.
"I cried. I didn't know what was going to happen," she said.
But this bride wasn't about to let logistics ruin her big day.
"The people at St. Thomas told me there was a chapel on-site and that I would be more than welcome to use it," she explained. "So we just moved everyone from the church across the street to the hospital."
With only an hour delay, though confined to a wheelchair, Nepomuceno rolled down the aisle to her new husband.
She said, "He's just happy I'm taking care of myself and putting my health first. At the end of the day we're going to be together and we're going to be married."
But the beauty in this story doesn't end there. The person who stood right beside her during the ceremony, her maid of honor, is more than just a friend.
"She's one of my best friends and she donated her kidney to me," Nepomuceno said with tears in her eyes. "If it weren't for her selfless act I wouldn't be here today ... I wouldn't be here to celebrate my new life with my new husband."
"The people at St. Thomas hospital have been more than generous to me and I'm so grateful," she said, "I couldn't ask for anything more."
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