Couple weds at hospital so groom's sick grandmother could attend ceremony: 'This was just for her'

A couple arranged an intimate wedding ceremony to honor the groom’s 100-year-old grandmother so she could witness their nuptials from her hospital bed.

Sky Howard and Clay Cameron were married in front of Clay’s grandmother, Charlotte Bussard, on May 29 at Hemphill County Hospital in Canadian, Texas. The couple made the decision to bring the celebration to the hospital room after the centenarian’s health began to deteriorate.

“Granny is a matriarch about family. She turned 100 last November,” Sky told Yahoo Lifestyle. “We had big expectations that she was going to make it to our actual wedding date on New Year’s Eve, but she started getting really sick. Her health started going downhill.”

According to Sky, she and her new husband decided that they needed to think of a way for her to be present for their major life milestone. Clay’s mother thought the ceremony was a great idea, and the family took two days to quickly prepare the gathering.

The couple kept the early wedding a secret, and Bussard didn’t expect anything.

“They told her something was going to be happening, they didn’t tell her what,” Sky said.

“They got her dressed, and she got to see Clay dressed up,” said Sky. “She likes to see her grandsons dressed up, he was wearing his coat and hat — she was really excited!”

The couple kept the ceremony at the hospital small, with only Clay’s mother and Dr. Frederick, a physician at the hospital and close family friend who married them, in attendance.

Frederick was not an ordained minister and instead sealed the ceremony in saying, “by the power invested in me by being a follower and believer in Jesus Christ,” which Sky said was ”pretty neat.” She shared that the physician realized he was underdressed when he got to the hospital and even ran home to change into a suit and tie.

“Her condition was pretty frail, we didn’t want to bombard her with a bunch of people,” Sky told Yahoo Lifestyle. “This was just for her.”

She added that they wanted to keep it as small as possible, and they didn’t even bring her three children, who are 9, 11 and 18 years old, or Clay’s 18-year old son to the hospital to witness the ceremony.

“My 11-year-old was like, ‘You got married and didn’t take me with you?’” Sky said. She explained to her son that “we’re doing this just for granny because she’s sick!”

Still, Sky’s son “was in all kinds of disarray that there was a wedding and he didn’t get to go.”

While Clay’s grandmother is receiving care at the hospital, the family is taking things day by day. But the couple is happy they were able to share their happiness with her.

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