“Drawing attention to it is representation of who I am now — confident, glowing and in love,” said Rebekah Marine.
This bride traded her "something blue" to "something gold" as she walked down the aisle wearing a shimmering, golden prosthetic arm.
On her wedding day, Rebekah Marine, 31, of Deptford, N.J., wore a custom gold prosthetic arm to show off her disability instead of hide it.
"Drawing attention to it is representation of who I am now — confident, glowing and in love," Marine told InsideEdition.com.
Marine was born with symbrachydactyly, an unexplained limb difference.
She said growing up with the same group of kids, she never realized she was any different until her 20s, when she went away for college and began working with new people.
"That’s when I dealt with a lot of staring and questions and harsh words," Marine said. "It was kind of like a wake-up call to me — 'Wow, I really am different.'"
As she began modelling for Nordstrom and Tommy Hilfiger, she learned to love herself and her disability, and said it was important for her to highlight who she was at her wedding.
"It represents the growth I’ve had over the past decade," Marine explained. "To show there is another side of life, and you can be happy with the cards you were given."
Marine normally wears a matte black prosthetic, but worked with sponsors Össur and Hanger Clinic for nearly a year to develop a "wedding arm" that was both functional and fashionable.
She explained she has worked with sponsors and non-profits all her life to get prosthetic arms, and encourages others who can’t afford their own prosthetic to look into acquiring funding.
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