When Heather Krueger was diagnosed with stage-4 liver disease in March 2014, the first thing on her mind was to find a donor.
But the now-26-year-old never expected to find love at the same time…
After hanging up fliers in her hometown of Tinley Park, Illinois in the U.S., and sharing her story on Facebook, Heather admits she got to a point where didn’t want to “get her hopes up anymore”.
“I had a few people call to inquire, but they were automatically disqualified because of weight or lifestyle or wrong blood type,” she remembers.
Watch Heather as she opens up about Chris saving her life. Post continues…
That’s until Chris Dempsey overheard a co-worker – who actually happened to be Heather’s cousin – sharing this story. And the former U.S. marine didn’t hestitate to jump to her aid.
“When I heard about it, I just thought I would want someone to help me,” Chris confesses.
A series of tests later, doctors revealed that Chris and Heather’s livers were a match. The pair were operated on for more than 8 hours, with Chris giving 55 per cent of his liver to Heather.
If Chris hadn’t have donated, Heather would have only had months to live.
As Chris and Heather recovered, they fell in love.
During the several months of recovery for the pair that ensued, Chris and Heather found themselves forming a close bond – one that only intensified with each day that went by.
Then, almost a year to the day that Heather was told she would only have a few months left to live, Chris got down on one knee and proposed to her!
“I just started crying at that point, put my hands over my mouth and didn’t hear a thing he said pretty much,” Heather told The Washington Post of her engagement.
Now, this miraculous love story continues, with the smitten twosome exchanging I Dos in front of friends, family and the medical staff who saw them through their life-threatening surgeries.
As a lovely final touch, Heather’s cousin – the one who alerted Chris to her traumatic diagnosis – was a groomsman in their wedding.
Congratulations to the happy couple!
