DREAM WEDDING COMES TRUE

 
Getting married on live tv is something that is special to say the least.
For Jennifer and Rob Ronnenberg, their relationship is exactly that.
In October of 2017, Jennifer got the surprise of her life when she was told that she would be getting new lungs that day after a long and painful battle with Cystic Fibrosis.
“It was the best moment of my life,” Jennifer said.
Then, about a year later, Jennifer, along with her fiancé, Rob Ronnenberg, got the second surprise of Jenniffer ’ life, when they found out that they were picked to be on a new Lifetime show, 'My Great Big Live Wedding with David Tutera.’
The Byron couple first became a potential match for the show when talent finders for the new show saw a viral video showing Jennifer taking her first breathes with her new lungs.
After being initial candidates for the show in the spring of 2018, they were told a crew would be coming to the small town in Minnesota to see if they would end up being on the show.
Once that crew got there, they were then surprised when they were told that they would be on the show, and in fact, David Tutera, a famous wedding designer and host of the new show, was there to add to the surprise.
Now, about a year and a half since she got her new lungs, Jennifer and Rob were married on live tv.
“Overall it was exciting as something that started out as kind of a joke to us, because who would really want to see us get married, to then see how beautiful and magical the night turned out to be as a quick finish to the nearly 11 months of work leading up to it,” Rob said.
The couple got married at The Union Depot, in St. Paul, and although it’s hard to imagine a train station being a beautiful wedding venue, it was exactly that.
“It was breathtaking,” Jennifer said.
One of the special parts of the ceremony for the couple was the fact that they got to share the special day with Jennifer’s lung donor Lacey.
Although, Lacey’s parents couldn’t attend the ceremony, they wanted to make sure that Lacey could be apart of it in spirit.
This happened when Tutera, revealed a big surprise by saying that Lacey’s parents had bought a pair of earrings for her right before she passed away, and that they were starting a tradition of buying pairs for Lacey.
Lacey’s parents wanted to include Jennifer in the tradition, and did just that.
“Sharing the day of our wedding with Lacey's family and the world, which was possible because of the her, is something we are grateful for,” Rob said.
As he explained it, the day happened because of them.
“The day was able to happen because of them and we are happy for how much David Tutera included her and them in a way which honors the gift. We are hopeful it might have had an impact on people watching and encouraged others to register as organ donors so someday another family may be able to celebrate with someone who gets to live because of the decision,” Rob explained.
Aside from Lacey’s family being included in the special day, the couple is thankful for Turera, being attentive to their wishes.
“There were small touches we talked to David about that were important which were included in the day and were greatly appreciated by us. One of these was having the surprise guests of Dr. Wylam, Vicki Dean, and Rose Felten who have all been a part of Jennifer's care team was special,” Rob said.
Since Cystic Fibrosis, is such a big part of who Jennifer is, the couple knew that they wanted that to be apart of the special day, and it was.
“Other details were the way Cystic Fibrosis was talked about so we can help raise awareness, and the amazing addition of 6500 purple roses at the venue were beyond our expectations. These roses and the inclusion of babies breath for what it represented were so meaningful we can't say thank you enough,” Rob explained.
The Byron couple described the night as magical, and are humbled to have their wedding on live tv.
“Overall the night was magical and we feel honored to have been a part of it,” Rob said.