COVID-19 throws wrench into wedding plans for local couple, but they find a way to make it work
Published at
RIGBY — A Rigby couple had to put their dream wedding festivities on pause after the bride tested positive for COVID-19.
Two days before Braden Boyce, 23, and Elizabeth Darrington, 19, were supposed to tie the knot, Darrington found out she had caught the virus. With the wedding set for Oct. 9, and assuming Boyce had been exposed to COVID-19 too, the couple was left with a choice to make.
“We were like, ‘We have to cancel everything,'” Darrington recalls thinking after finding out her test results. “Nobody’s going to come to the wedding if we still host it and tell people we have COVID.”
The reception — including the food and flowers — that was booked at a venue in Rexburg had to be postponed to a later date and their over week-long honeymoon was canceled.
“We already have an apartment and stuff that we can go move in, so we’re just going to honeymoon in our apartment, I guess,” she said.
Countless hours were spent getting ready for their big day, and even though the current circumstances aren’t ideal, the couple has decided to make the best of the situation. They are planning to hold a small ceremony, mostly made up of family members who they believe have been exposed to the virus over the last few days, on a ridge that overlooks Heise on Friday.
Darrington’s uncle, who is a judge and has already had COVID-19, is going to be performing the ceremony.
“We knew there was a risk, but we never thought it was going to happen to us,” Darrington explained.
In some ways, Boyce regrets that Darrington got tested in the first place because of all the changes that have since taken place with the wedding, but he recognizes the importance of letting people who are considered high risk know they might have been exposed to COVID-19.
“It’s sad because this seems like the most important event of your life. The one you always dream and think of,” Boyce mentioned. “It’s unfortunate, but I think for the best with the circumstances we were given.”
Darrington said on a positive note, they got refunded for everything they had originally planned, plus she’s always wanted a small wedding with close family in attendance and it to be held outside.
“It does suck, but as long as you can see something positive in it, I think your wedding can still be a blast,” Darrington said with a smile.
Darrington has had a headache, body aches, runny nose and sore throat but is feeling “pretty good” and is looking forward to what should be an unforgettable wedding day.
To read more COVID-19 news, click here.