Recently, we had the pleasure of speaking with Marta and hearing the brave and inspiring story behind her last-minute marriage to Ankur. Most relationships and marriages have their obstacles, but for this incredible young couple, the obstacle was Ankur’s cancer diagnosis. Marta tells us about their struggles and the events leading up to “I Do.”
“So a little after getting engaged, my then fiancé, was diagnosed with cancer. We had already started the wedding planning process and this news obviously stopped all plans. He had 4 surgeries. One every other week for two months and was on bed rest and not walking for about 3-4 months. He then went through radiation and chemo treatments. During all of this, we still wanted to get married so we were trying to make it happen. I planned about 3 weddings in different states. I first looked at New York, then planned for Mississippi (where I’m from), and North Dakota (where my grandparents are).
Every time I was told to start planning again, something would happen and I would have to stop/cancel everything. I didn’t mind so much because I just wanted him better, and I wanted to be able to focus on him. Everything seemed to be going well and he seemed to be getting better. We even traveled to Mississippi to surprise my mom for her birthday.
“We stepped into the elevator and looked at each other and both knew we didn’t want to wait any longer.”
When we got back, we received news that the cancer had spread to several locations in his body and in his bone. We stepped into the elevator and looked at each other and both knew we didn’t want to wait any longer. No matter what, we were getting married. They put him on a two-month plan. We had some prior experience with the drugs and knew the side effects and kind of what to expect, so we knew we had to do it before the possibility of a more intense treatment.
I had 36 days to plan my wedding. There was no sleeping for me during that time. Everything was actually working out perfectly, but we couldn’t find a videographer. We found some that we liked their work, but they wanted crazy numbers for a 30-person wedding. And a few who contacted us just weren’t what we were looking for.
…It was about a week till my wedding when I found this site [GigSalad.com] and Blaga. We watched a few of her videos and decided to try and see if she would be within budget, thinking it was a long shot because her work was really good.
From the beginning, she was very quick to respond to any questions and was always professional. She had, and may still not have any idea why we were looking at such short notice. We booked her within hours of asking for a quote. She had another wedding that day, but made sure to get my whole wedding and left her team for my reception. They were so nice and polite and weren’t in the way of anything at all. I had a photographer there that I had already booked, and they worked around her too. Even with the time restraint and circumstances, I was able to get my dream wedding.” -Marta Dees
Have you had an especially memorable event due to a GigSalad performer? Tell us about it in the comments below!
If you’re looking for an event professional who can help create your dream wedding, check out your local options on GigSalad.