"I was filled with joy and happiness but it also broke my heart too because in reality, he's not actually there," Brittany Yost told InsideEdition.com.
A West Virginia bride was overcome with emotion as her grandfather "officiated" her wedding despite passing away more than a year before the big day.
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Brittany Yost, 23, burst into tears as she heard the voice of her grandfather, Ronald Adkins, when she said her vows to her groom, Jordon. The recording was a prayer he said for Brittany’s sister during her wedding in 2015.
“It was the best feeling ever because that’s something I’d always wanted,” Brittany told InsideEdition.com, through tears. “I was filled with joy and happiness, but it also broke my heart too because in reality, he’s not actually there.”
She explained she was extremely close with Adkins.
“I grew up on a farm so he taught me a lot,” she explained. “He was very hardworking and very determined. He was one of the nicest men you would have ever met. He would’ve done anything for anybody.”
Adkins passed away in April last year from medical complications. He was 89 years old.
A week later, Jordon proposed to her.
"A part of me actually grew angry for the fact that other people had that privilege and had the honor of him there and I wouldn’t get to," she admitted. "Way before I was even engaged, we had always talked about [him officiating my wedding]. He always said he would be honored to do so. He knew before he passed away."
As they were planning their wedding, Brittany said she avoided talking about who would officiate it, and asked Jordon to make the decision.
Less than a month before the wedding, Brittany’s sister suggested to Jordon they would reach out to her videographer to get the audio file of Adkins praying over the 2015 wedding.
They decided to keep it a secret from Brittany, and as the recording played, there wasn’t a dry eye in the room.
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“The very second it started playing, she knew who it was,” Jordon said. “I didn’t know how exactly she’d react to it but it was perfect.”
Their wedding photographer, Sarah Irvin, said, “I was crying so hard I was shaking. […] We've all lost someone. We all have someone that we'd love to hear their voice for one last time.”
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