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Couple marries at hospital hours before welcoming baby

31
YI-JIN YU
·3 min read

A Missouri couple married in an impromptu wedding at a hospital last week, hours before they welcomed a baby boy on Valentine's Day.

Sara and Brandon Perry were originally supposed to say "I do" on Feb. 16, but their plans were sidetracked just a couple of days before the big day.

Sara Perry, a police officer, was 35 weeks pregnant at the time and she told "Good Morning America" that on Feb. 13, she woke up and realized her water had broken.

"We were like, 'OK, I guess we're not going to make it to Friday,' so we went to the hospital," the 39-year-old said.

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Sara Perry was admitted to Saint Luke's East Hospital in Lee's Summit, Missouri, and while there, she mentioned to hospital staff that she and her then-fiance were likely going to miss their wedding.

"One of the nurses was talking to another nurse from down the hall, and I guess her patients were in there also getting ready to have a child and the husband is an ordained minister," Perry explained. "And he's like, 'Well, hey, I could do it before I have my baby.' And so their nurse came back and told our nurse [and] our nurse came in and told us. She was like, 'I know this sounds crazy. But if you'd like, we can have an ordained minister that's having a baby down the hall come and marry you two.'"

The Perrys said they were immediately on board with the idea, especially since they had already secured their marriage license the day before and had it in their truck.

"It's what we both wanted so there's no reason to delay it," Brandon Perry said.

PHOTO: Sara and Brandon Perry married on Feb. 13 at Saint Luke’s East Hospital, where Sara had been admitted after her water broke at 35 weeks. (Courtesy of Saint Luke’s East Hospital)
PHOTO: Sara and Brandon Perry married on Feb. 13 at Saint Luke’s East Hospital, where Sara had been admitted after her water broke at 35 weeks. (Courtesy of Saint Luke’s East Hospital)

Their wedding festivities, complete with a bouquet toss, unfolded quickly -- within about 30 minutes -- since Sara Perry was already in labor and was having contractions at the time.

PHOTO: Sara Perry wore a wedding gown and veil fashioned from hospital linen and even had a bouquet toss with hospital nurses participating in the tradition. (Courtesy of Saint Luke’s East Hospital)
PHOTO: Sara Perry wore a wedding gown and veil fashioned from hospital linen and even had a bouquet toss with hospital nurses participating in the tradition. (Courtesy of Saint Luke’s East Hospital)

"While we were trying to get everything ready and I was trying to fix my hair, the nurses had made up a veil out of gauze. And then they got a bouquet of flowers together and they'd wrap that with gauze and I made a toga white dress out of a sheet that was on my hospital bed," Sara Perry recalled, adding that it was "all fun."

PHOTO: The staff at Saint Luke’s East Hospital helped celebrate the couple with “Just Married” decorations at their room and a wedding cake from the hospital cafeteria. (Courtesy of Saint Luke’s East Hospital)
PHOTO: The staff at Saint Luke’s East Hospital helped celebrate the couple with “Just Married” decorations at their room and a wedding cake from the hospital cafeteria. (Courtesy of Saint Luke’s East Hospital)
PHOTO: The Perrys had planned on marrying on Feb. 16 but moved their wedding date to Feb. 13 ahead of their baby’s arrival on Feb. 14. (Courtesy of Saint Luke’s East Hospital)
PHOTO: The Perrys had planned on marrying on Feb. 16 but moved their wedding date to Feb. 13 ahead of their baby’s arrival on Feb. 14. (Courtesy of Saint Luke’s East Hospital)
PHOTO: Sara and Brandon Perry married hours before welcoming their baby boy Oliver on Feb. 14. (Courtesy of Saint Luke’s East Hospital)
PHOTO: Sara and Brandon Perry married hours before welcoming their baby boy Oliver on Feb. 14. (Courtesy of Saint Luke’s East Hospital)
PHOTO: Two Saint Luke’s East Hospital nurses served as the Perrys’ witnesses and signed their marriage license. (Courtesy of Saint Luke’s East Hospital)
PHOTO: Two Saint Luke’s East Hospital nurses served as the Perrys’ witnesses and signed their marriage license. (Courtesy of Saint Luke’s East Hospital)

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About nine hours after their wedding, the Perrys said hello to their newborn, a boy named Oliver, who was born at 1:47 a.m. on Feb. 14. He is the first child for the couple and the second for Sara Perry, who is also a mom to a 5-year-old son named Sebastian.

PHOTO: Sara and Brandon Perry married hours before welcoming their baby boy Oliver on Feb. 14, 2024. (ABC News)
PHOTO: Sara and Brandon Perry married hours before welcoming their baby boy Oliver on Feb. 14, 2024. (ABC News)

Now 8 days old, Oliver had to spend his first week in the neonatal intensive care unit, but is now healthy and was discharged Thursday morning.

"He's officially the sweetest valentine I've ever received and we'll get to celebrate that for years to come, which is wonderful," Sara Perry said.

The Perrys said they still plan on having a destination wedding, either in Mexico or in a Caribbean country later this year.

Couple marries at hospital hours before welcoming baby originally appeared on goodmorningamerica.com