PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — Watching your child get married is a moment too special to miss, so when a father couldn’t leave the hospital on his son’s big day, his care team at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center brought the celebration to his bedside.
With the help of his father’s medical team, Allen Sweppenneiser surprised his dying father, Harry, with the gift of a lifetime.
“Just seeing him and his reaction, it was everything. And, you know, I wish he was there in person, but It was better that everyone teamed up to make this happen,” he said.
Allen says Harry had been battling an infection in his lower body, and to keep it from spreading, both of his legs were amputated.
When they realized Harry would not be able to attend the September wedding in-person, Allen and the team of nurses worked to make sure he could watch it via livestream. The couple were getting married over two hours away in Luzerne County.
“As soon as we learned that his dad wasn’t going to be able to be there, it was all hands on deck,” said Brynn Sweppenneiser.
“Initially we went right to the idea of doing a livestream, which proved to be technically very challenging, so I got my whole IT department involved,” said Julie Seman, Nurse Manager at Penn Presbyterian.
Seman says the next day was the real surprise.
“We had one of our nurses give him a shave and a haircut the day before. We had one of the nurses make a boutonniere. We had got an outfit down for him to wear,” she said.
“For our honeymoon we were going down to New Jersey. We have to pass Philly on the way to get there, and we were just like, well, why don’t we just stop and see him,” said Allen.
It was a milestone, emotional moment that gave a father a chance to witness his son’s forever.
“There’s nothing like it. It’s why you go into healthcare. It’s why you help people,” said Seman.
Harry passed away in late October.
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