Bride celebrates wedding with groom’s mannequin as he had food poisoning — the photos are hilarious

Even though the groom was unable to join the festivities, the wedding in itself was a fun-filled event.

PUBLISHED 1 DAY AGO

Representational image showing a bride and her groom (Cover image source: Getty Images)

What does a bride do if the groom falls sick on the day of the wedding? Though canceling the wedding could be an option, it's a decision that would be tough to make. Think of the wasted expenses! That is perhaps why one bride decided to improvise when her groom was sick and in the hospital on the day of their wedding.

According to PEOPLE, Christine Karmire decided to go ahead with the wedding, but since her groom, Gannon Karmire couldn't be there at the venue, she replaced him with a mannequin version of him. "When we think back on our wedding, bittersweet is the first word that comes to mind," says Christine, 26. "We were so happy to finally have our friends and family together, but of course, it did not play out how we had imagined."

"We do believe that with the hand we were dealt, it could not have gone any better than it did," she adds. "We still felt loved and celebrated by everyone and are so appreciative of their support." The unique wedding took place on November 14, 2021, shortly after Gannon woke up ill.

"He wasn't feeling sick enough for us to contemplate seeing a doctor until about two hours before the ceremony was supposed to start, and then it got worse very quickly," she explains. "At that point, we were just nervous for his health and the status of the wedding was an afterthought."

However, this was not the first time the couple had run into an issue. Their initial plan was to get married in September 2020, but they had to postpone the wedding because of the pandemic. After tying the knot with immediate family in their backyard in July 2020, they had rescheduled their nuptials for September 2021. But just one week before the wedding, Christine tested positive for COVID-19. Once again, they had to push their wedding date.

"All of our vendors were so gracious and accommodating," Gannon notes. "And we are so thankful to Brian from The Victorian for handling all of this for us while we focused on Christine getting healthy." But, you know how they say the third time's a charm. The couple just decided to carry on with their nuptials despite the unfortunate incident. That's when one of the owners at the wedding venue, The Victorian, came up with the idea of "Stick Gannon".

"He thought it would be good comic relief for everyone in attendance if I made a traditional reception entrance with 'Stick Gannon,'" she explains. "It was meant to lighten the mood and encourage people to enjoy both the company gathered and the already prepared dinner." The guests also took to the mannequin and all of them posed with the makeshift groom for pictures as well.

Though it was disappointing to miss his own wedding, Gannon is happy he could lighten up the mood. "The whole situation was really funny," he explains. "Even though I know we missed out on what would have been a great day together, I know there will be so many more in the future."

"A few days later, getting to look back at the pictures and videos everyone was sending me with 'Stick Gannon' made it well worth the bit of sadness that came along too," he adds. "Frankly, he danced better than me!"

Adds Gannon, "I am so glad our friends and family still got to enjoy time with her and the event we worked so hard to plan did not go to waste."

Their photographer Bri Hines was also extremely helpful, said Christine. "Bri offered to shoot wedding portrait photos for us after Gannon was feeling better and The Victorian was kind enough to have us back to do this," Christine explains. "These images are so special to us and Bri really captured the love we have for each other. We can't wait to continue to look back on them in the years to come."

They are now looking forward to their new life as a married couple, albeit the mannequin. "Seeing as this is now the third iteration of our wedding plans, we do not foresee another ceremony or reception," Christine says. "We are just so thankful we are both now healthy. We hope to save up for an extended honeymoon in the future and continue to make memories together."

"We have been together for almost eight years and in that time, have learned a lot about what makes a relationship — and let me tell you, it's not about having a party," she adds. "We will cherish the memories of our small family ceremony and continue to laugh at the debacle this situation turned out to be. And one day, we look forward to telling our kids this whole wedding saga."