Couple ties knot at hospital's maternity ward

The newly weds, Veronica Kaniu and Francis Mungai at Thika Level 5 Hospital. [Kamau Maichuhie/Standard]

Francis Mungai and his bride Veronica Kaniu were looking forward to exchanging their marriage vows last Saturday at PCEA Kiganjo Church in Thika, Kiambu.

The couple was keen to have a perfect and memorable wedding and therefore left nothing to chance as they put everything in place to make it one of a kind.

By Wednesday last week, the couple was set for the big day. Almost all plans were finalized and they looked forward to exchanging their marriage vows.

However, as fate would have it, the wedding would not happen at the church as they had earlier planned and envisaged.

Reason, the bride who was heavily expectant abruptly developed labour pains and got admitted at the Thika Level 5 Hospital.

Upon being examined by the doctor, they recommended she had to undergo a cesarean Section form of delivery.

And on Thursday, Kaniu underwent a successful caesarian section and delivered a bouncing baby boy.

Determined to ensure their weeding goes on as earlier planned, the couple asked the doctors if it was possible to be allowed to go home for her big day.

However, doctors informed them that it was not possible for her to leave the facility just two days after delivering a baby through caesarian section.

Not sure of what to do, the bridegroom together with relatives and friends convened a crisis meeting to deliberate on the way forward.

They resolved it was not practical to postpone the wedding since all plans had already been completed and therefore decided to approach the hospital management and the church for a green light to perform the weeding at the facility.

The couple got the nod from both the hospital and the church, paving way for the wedding at the maternity ward of the hospital.

“We had no alternative but to do our wedding here at the hospital. The doctors told me that my wife was not in a position to go home for the wedding and so I requested them to permit us go ahead with our plans here ,” an ecstatic Mungai told The Standard.

It was therefore double blessings for the couple when they summed up the joy of welcoming a newborn baby boy with the exchange of their marriage vows at the hospital.

There was a light moment at the hospital as a section of the staff including the doctors and nurses became part of the brief wedding ceremony.

Kaniu who could not her joy back thanked God for the double blessings saying the wedding came to her as a surprise as she had already given up hope that it would happen after she got admitted for delivery.

“I have no words to express my joy and happiness since I never expected the wedding to go on. I have no enough words to thank God for what he has done to us as a family. I am very happy that I delivered safely and we have now crowned the joy of welcoming our newborn son with exchanging our wedding vows,” she said.

After the wedding, the bridal team, family and friends proceeded for the reception at the church leaving behind the bride at the hospital to continue recuperating.