Like most weddings, hundreds of photos from dozens of cameras helped capture Sarah Ray’s big day.
But of all the shots snapped, none will be as remembered or as talked about as this one.
Shot by Ray’s mother, the picture shows the bride responding to the scene of a car crash just minutes after the ceremony had concluded – while still wearing her wedding dress.
The photo was taken last Saturday in Clarksville, Tennessee. Ray had just tied the knot with her husband Paul when they received terrible news: Ray’s grandparents and father had been involved in a serious accident while on their way to the wedding reception after a driver ran a red light and slammed into their vehicle.
Both Sarah and Paul work as paramedics for the Montgomery County, Tennessee Emergency Medical Service (EMS) where they had met some five years previously. So it was a no-brainer for them to immediately attend the scene and render whatever aid they could, even if they happened to be dressed for an entirely different occasion.
“Anybody in the EMS field would’ve done the same thing,” Ray told News Channel 5 in Nashville, Tennessee.
“I don’t know if what I did was special but I was in a wedding dress.”
READ MORE: Woman uses Samurai sword to fight off home intruder
The incident took place less than two miles from the church.
While she was responding to the scene, Ray’s mother Marcy Martin snapped the above photo, showing Ray walking towards the camera with her dress scooped up in her hands, equal parts stress and chagrin in her face.
“I love this photo because it shows her character and accentuates her beauty,” Martin said.
But Ray has a different take.
“I just have to laugh because I know the face I’m giving my Mom like, ‘Really Mom? Are you really taking a picture?’” Ray said.
READ MORE: ‘It’s more about the body now’: barely-there wedding gowns big in bridal fashion
The photo has gone viral since it was posted by Firefighters Worldwide on their Facebook page this past weekend, garnering over 6000 shares as of this writing with plenty of people praising Ray for her commitment and dedication to her job.
And luckily, Ray’s wedding reception went off without a hitch – minus a couple of guests who happened to be at the hospital.
Comments