Michael Joyce has been married to his wife, Linda, for 34 years. But the 68-year-old has Alzheimer’s disease, and he forgot the two had tied the knot.
So, he proposed to her again. And she accepted, again.
“He looked quite anxious, like he was trying to tell me something. I jumped up and I held his hand and I said, ‘What’s wrong, darling? What are you trying to say?'” Linda told People Magazine. “He said, ‘Will you marry me?'”
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About a week later, the couple got married near Hamilton Lake in their neighbourhood of Frankton — with a little help from those observing their love story.
Linda posted on website Neighbourly asking those in the community for help in putting the event together.
“To Michael, it will be our wedding ceremony and to our friends and myself, a truly precious and memorable occasion,” she wrote on the website. “If anyone out there who would kindly… for a fee… say a few words to ‘re-marry’ us I would be extremely grateful.”
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Members of the community responded, with celebrant Gareth Duncan and local photographer Desmond Downs offering their services.
Downs later wrote about the heartwarming ceremony in a blog post titled, “A special wedding shoot.”
“I couldn’t resist offering to photograph this special occasion for free, just for the privilege of being there,” he wrote, sharing photos and videos from the day.
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Downs shared details from the ceremony, saying Linda mouthed the words, “I love you” to her husband repeatedly.
Michael, who was diagnosed with the disease in 2010, wasn’t able to recite his own vows, so Duncan read them for him.
The photographer marveled at the fact that while Michael wasn’t able to speak, he still woke up that morning remembering it was his wedding day.
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It’s something that surprised Linda, too.
“The part that’s amazing is that he didn’t forget,” she told People Magazine. “He woke up the next morning and said, ‘Do you still want to?’ He pointed to my finger. He remembered each day.”
Duncan told New Zealand newspaper Stuff that the couple’s story is one of “love, patience and commitment.”
But Linda said it best herself, after exchanging vows with her husband: “We’re it, eh, darling? Just you and me, baby.”
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