real life

Paralysis wasn’t going to stop this man from sharing his first dance with his bride.

Have some tissues handy before you read this story.

A paralysed ex-soldier has surprised his wife by using a special harness to dance with her on their wedding day.

Sgt. Joey Johnson, 27, met his bride-to-be Michelle, after retuning from a 10-month tour of duty in Afganistan in 2012. But soon after, he suffered severe spinal injuries in a motorbike accident, paralysing him from the chest down and confining him to a wheelchair.

But that wasn’t going to stop him from sharing a beautiful first dance with his bride.

Image via Courtesy Linnealiz Photography.
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Unbeknownst to Michelle, Joey's friends helped him create a special harness suspended from the venue's ceiling, which allowed him to climb out of his wheelchair.

"If you know Joey, he cannot keep a secret," Michelle told ABC News. "But he made my dreams come true and I never knew how special our day would really be."

Image via Courtesy Linnealiz Photography.
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And there wasn't a dry eye in the house.

"Everyone was crying in the room," she said. "It was so amazing to be eye to eye with him again and such a dream come true."

Image via Courtesy Linnealiz Photography.

Rachel Linnea, who photographed the wedding, told CNN, “When Michelle walked in the whole room was quiet, she had no idea what was going on. She saw Joey standing and she had a giant smile on her face which quickly turned to tears."

"Joey had been planning the dance for months."

Click here to watch the beautiful footage.

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