MAUMEE, Ohio (WTVG/Gray News) – A couple who couldn’t afford a traditional wedding were set to tie the knot at an Ohio courthouse on Valentine’s Day until complete strangers stepped in to gift them the wedding of their dreams.
David Kaiser, a pastor at both St. Paul’s Lutheran Church and Mosaic Ministries, says Traci Edinger and Martez Bush asked if he could officiate their wedding at the courthouse on Valentine’s Day. The couple wanted to celebrate with a traditional church wedding but were struggling to pay for it, WTVG reports.
“I told him I can’t afford a wedding dress or anything other than the license and thought getting married at the courthouse was our only option,” Edinger told WTVG. “I didn’t have either a dress or anyone to give me away.”
The money the couple had saved for their wedding had to be used for an unexpected emergency. Edinger says a squatter destroyed their home when she was away at her daughter’s funeral last August.
It’s been a tough year for Edinger and Bush, but that started to change when Kaiser offered not only to officiate their wedding but also to hold the ceremony at St. Paul’s for free. As word spread, more than 30 residents donated items, including suits, a wedding dress, gift cards and a wedding cake, to help make the couple’s big day special.
One member of the St. Paul’s congregation even stepped up to walk the bride down the aisle.
“He has never met her, so to support her on her wedding day is just incredible,” Kaiser said.
The entire wedding plan came together within a week. During the ceremony, Kaiser asked those in attendance to raise their hands if they did not know the couple personally. Almost everyone raised their hands.
“It’s incredible to see our community rally around a couple they have never met and show them the love of Jesus in such a practical way,” Kaiser said.
After the ceremony, the newlyweds and their guests celebrated at the church with food, drinks and cake.
“I didn’t expect this,” Edinger said. “I had nothing. We didn’t have nothing. I left everything in pastor’s hands, and this is what he did. Pastor Dave and God were on my side with this one.”
The couple say it was the best day of their lives.
“I couldn’t wait another day without being his wife. He’s the best man I’ve ever met in my entire life,” said Edinger of Bush.
For their honeymoon, the newlyweds spent the night at a hotel, a stay that was also donated by community members.
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