Matron of Honor Gives Birth and Misses Best Friend's Wedding, Then Bride Surprises Her in the Hospital
Georgia bride Arielle deNeergaard gave her best friend and matron of honor Christine West an emotional surprise after West gave birth and missed her wedding
One matron of honor wasn't able to make it to her best friend's wedding after she gave birth — but the pair still managed to celebrate the milestones together thanks to the bride's thoughtful surprise.
In a heartwarming story shared with Good Morning America on June 20, Arielle deNeergaard opened up about how she visited her best friend Christine West on the morning of her wedding, just days after West gave birth.
DeNeergaard had been West's maid of honor, so West was ready to return the favor. "Me being the maid of honor for her and doing those duties was something that I really, really, really wanted to do," West said. The women had been close friends since the first grade.
Not long after West accepted her important role, West found out that she was pregnant — and due two days before deNeergaard's June 8 wedding date.
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West soon realized with a baby arriving so close to her best friend's wedding, she would unlikely be able to make it. However, deNeergaard made sure that West was still part of her wedding day.
"She's my best friend and my sister and soulmate. I just couldn't imagine not sharing that moment with her," deNeergaard told GMA, adding, "and because there was a way to make it happen, too, I was just like, let's do this."
Related: Bride and Groom Surprise Wedding Guests with Rings Under Seats and Random Ring Bearer (Exclusive)
West had given birth to her son the night before the wedding, and with West's husband Chandler's permission, deNeergaard arranged for a special surprise.
After hair and makeup, the bride and photographer Ean Cuenca of Cuence Creative drove 40 minutes to the hospital where West was and surprised her in her wedding gown with flowers in hand. The emotional moment was caught on video in a now-viral Instagram Reel.
Though West said she was "shell-shocked" when her best friend walked through the door, she couldn't have been happier with the surprise visit. "The thought of her thinking to do that was just absolutely beautiful," West said.
"It just shows how selfless she is as a person and who she is to her core and how important our relationship is," she continued, noting, "for her to genuinely have taken time away from her literal wedding to come and see me all in the hospital bed."
West was grateful that they were able to be "there for each other in the biggest capacity that we could be."
All-in-all, deNeergaard was thrilled she and West were able to experience the milestone moments together. "I saw an opportunity to share in those moments and the duality of it was just so cool and cosmic," she reflected.
After deNeergaard visit where she got to meet her best friend's baby, she headed to The Butterfly Pavilion in Acworth, Ga., where she tied the knot with Anders deNeergaard.
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