Out Of Coma, Sick Teen Walks Mother Down The Aisle
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- For a year, brothers Alexis and Darwin Castellon planned and organized a wedding their parents never had.
They saved their allowance, added birthday and Christmas money to help pay for their mother's wedding gown and helped set a date.
But in October, plans were interrupted after 14-year-old Alexis fell into a coma and was hospitalized at Holtz Children's Hospital at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center. He has suffered from the genetic disorder cystic fibrosis since he was a baby, which makes breathing difficult due to lung infections and can affect the liver and pancreas, as well. Alexis is currently on a transplant list waiting for a new liver.
"When Alexis came into the hospital, we didn't think he would make it and we were told to say our goodbyes," said Alexis' mother, Yolanda Maradiaga.
Three weeks later, Alexis woke up from the coma but with the wedding set for November 14th, his hospital stay couldn't have come at a worse time.
"Alexis tells me how he dreams of walking me down the aisle and marry his dad," said Yolanda. "We tried to see if he could leave the hospital for a day but his doctor told us the risk would be too high," said Maradiaga.
Hospital staff were determined to see it through, however, and decided to host the wedding themselves.
They also chose to keep it a secret from Alexis.
"He has no idea that the wedding is still on, and that he will walk me down the aisle as he always dreamed," said his mother.
Saturday, they surprised Alexis and had the wedding inside Jackson Memorial Hospital. They turned the conference room into a wedding chapel and held the ceremony in front of friends, family and most importantly, Alexis.
In a wheelchair, the teen held the train of his mother's gown down the aisle as he watched his parents exchanged their vows. Elias Castellon and Yolanda Maradiaga were finally married.
And despite their son's setback, they never had to change the date.
