Love Adventured, a wedding photography service, was lucky enough to capture a special moment for bride Rebecca Green.
Although Rebecca was ecstatic to be married, there would be one person missing at her wedding: her deceased son Triston.
His obituary reads:
“Triston was a phenomenal human being. His short life was abundant with obstacles and challenges. And he met each of them head on with a stubborn tenacity.”
Prior to his death, Triston selflessly opted to be an organ donor, an act which ultimately saved the lives of 5 strangers.
Unbeknownst to Rebecca, her soon-to-be-husband Kelly Turney had a special surprise up his sleeve.
Kelly managed to locate the recipient of Triston’s heart, Jacob Kilby. He then flew Jacob to Alaska in order to surprise Becky during their wedding ceremony.
Love Adventured describes:
“Her son couldn’t be here for the wedding day, but Becky’s groom, Kelley Turney, surprised her by flying Jacob up to Alaska to stand in as a groomsman carrying Triston’s heart.”
Rebecca is stunned.
Luckily, Love Adventured was there to capture the moment in photos which have since gone viral.
As you browse through the photos, you can see the emotions that Rebecca goes through while meeting Jacob.
Rebecca’s face shows evident shock, overwhelming surprise, and ultimately joy— all within a few seconds.
In another heartwarming shot, we can see Rebecca, seemingly in disbelief, listening to her son’s heart beat in Jacob’s chest.
Social media is going wild for Kelly’s amazing surprise.
In less than 24 hours, Love Adventured’s post has already received over 75,000 shares.
Comments on the post are varied. While most readers mention the beauty of the moment, others are sharing their own personal stories.
One woman writes, “My son Kaiden will be 8 in September. He just had his second heart transplant June 2016 and his first at only six and a half months old. Words can not explain how unbelievably grateful we are to our donor families. What a beautiful story.”
According to the Clinical Transplantation journal, approximately 2,000 heart transplants are performed each year in the United States; however, there still aren’t nearly enough donors to meet demand.
In fact, according to government statistics, 22 people die every single day awaiting an organ that may never arrive.
In May of 2015, Senator Bob Casey introduced the Organ Donation Awareness and Promotion Act. This act is aimed at further promoting organ donation and educating the public regarding the donor shortage.
If you live in the US and are interested in becoming an organ donor, go to organdonor.gov to learn more.
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