Paralyzed Bride-To-Be Alissa Boyle Working To Walk Down Aisle At Wedding

Why Walking Down The Aisle Will Be AStep For This Bride
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Alissa Boyle fully expected to be walking down the aisle on her wedding day.

But not long after her boyfriend, Nathan, proposed, Boyle was paralyzed in a freak accident in February 2012, according to WTAE Pittsburgh.

The nursing student from Pittsburgh had stopped to help a man who rolled his Jeep last winter when a semi truck came speeding toward the stopped car on the side of the road. Boyle, the man, and another nursing student were forced to jump from an overpass to avoid being hit by the out-of-control big rig.

Her doctors told her she wouldn't walk again, telling Boyle her spinal cord was severed, but a second review of her spine found that it wasn't actually torn completely.

“At first, when it happened, I was worried that [Nathan] was going to leave, and he never left my bedside. He told me, ‘You're not going to walk. You're going to run again,’” Boyle told WTAE.

Now, with the support of her fiancé and lots of physical therapy, she is on her way to walking down the aisle on September 7, 2013, in a fairytale wedding provided by Jamie's Dream Team, a nonprofit dedicated to helping those suffering from trauma, illness, injury or a disability.

Other brides who were paralyzed before their Big Days have followed through with the promise to walk down the aisle. Jennifer Darmon had been in a wheelchair since 2008, but walked down the aisle at her wedding in April 2011.

Perhaps the most famous paralyzed bride is Rachel Chapman, who was paralyzed when a friend pushed her into a pool while celebrating at her bachelorette party in May 2010. Chapman married the following year, but didn't walk down the aisle -- though she's currently learning to walk again.

Click through the slideshow below to read more heartwarming wedding stories.

6 Most Heartwarming Wedding Stories Of The Summer
Photographer Captures Proposal(01 of06)
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Patrick Lu captured Joel Bush's proposal to Jennifer Orr in Austin, Texas earlier this month. But Bush had no idea Lu had taken the photos -- until he found them on Reddit. The adorable story quickly went viral after Lu's August 3 post. (credit:Alamy)
Firefighter Goes To New Heights(02 of06)
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Knight in a fire-proof suit? That'd be Salt Lake City firefighter Kyle Marston, who rolled up in a firetruck to propose to girlfriend Carlie Wiechman in August. He climbed up the truck's ladder to knock on the window where Wiechman was in a meeting. When she came to the window, he asked her to marry him. Of course she said yes! (credit:Wikimedia)
Taiwan's First Same-Sex Wedding(03 of06)
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Fish Huang and You Ya-ting tied the knot in Taiwan on August 11 in Taiwan's first-ever same-sex wedding. The brides both wore white gowns, but opted to exchange Buddhist prayer beads in lieu of wedding rings. (credit:Ap Images)
Couple Remarries 50 Years After Divorce(04 of06)
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Lena Mae Henderson and Roland Davis got divorced 50 years ago. But the two lovebirds said "I do" again August 4. They first married in 1944 and were married for 20 years. They had five children together, all of whom attended their second wedding -- along with some grand and great-grandchildren. (credit:Shutterstock)
Medical Scare Nearly Cancels Wedding(05 of06)
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A Duluth, Minn. couple almost didn't make it down the aisle after the groom fell ill with a rare thoracic rupture, a condition which causes fluid to collect in the chest cavity. Justin Reis and bride Theresa Kettunen had plans B (a hospital wedding) and C (a Skype wedding) at the ready when doctors said Reis could go home the day before their scheduled nuptials. They made it down the aisle, as planned, on August 10. (credit:Northland's NewsCenter)
Wedding Ring Donated To Cancer Patients(06 of06)
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An anonymous woman donated her wedding ring to St. Vincent's Medical Center in Bridgeport, Conn. in June. The note she left with her ring attached said the sparkler was worth $3,300 and was only signed "Cancer Survivor's Wife." Hospital officials said the public was so moved by the story that they have since received offers to match the donation. (credit:WTNH.com)

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