A teen battling terminal cancer married his girlfriend Friday, thanks in part, to donations from the community.
Luke Blanock, who at times couldn’t stand during his cancer battle, walked down the aisle to marry his fiancée, Natalie Britvich.
“You can tell he's over the moon, very much in love,” Blanock’s grandmother, Rosemary Nikas, said.
Nikas helped set up her grandson’s special day, remembering how the Canon McMillian High School basketball star suddenly lost feeling in his legs two years ago.
“You go from being an outstanding athlete to not being able to walk out of the blue, no indication, just blindsided,” Nikas said.
Nikas said Blanock persevered, smiling through his chemotherapy, always wearing a brave face. A month after doctors told him the cancer had spread and was now terminal, Blanock proposed to Britvich.
“He said, ‘I'm not marrying Natalie to make her a widow. I'm marrying Natalie to spend 50 years with her.’ And that’s great. That’s how it should be,” Nikas said.
With no time to waste, the community donated almost everything for the Blanock wedding.
“We pulled this whole thing together in a month, which is pretty incredible for a wedding this size,” wedding planner Ashley Cyprowski said.
While everyone tries to be “Luke Strong,” there wasn't expected to be a dry eye in the house. Nikas simply said she just loved her grandson "a bunch."
“I believe in miracles and hope, and we certainly have that,” she said.
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