"My mother told me it's never too late for love," Maria Barker said on her wedding day at St. Paul's PACE, a care center for the elderly.
Maria and husband Ronald Barker, 65 and 73 respectively, exchanged vows Friday in front of a crowd of friends, family, and staff.
"The first time I looked at him I was very impressed," the bride told NBC 7. "I said I wish he'd see me and say something to me, but he never did it. Two months – I said 'oh Lord, if it's not for me take it away, but if he’s for me give me a hand."
Very soon afterwards Ronald gave in to Maria's charms and they quickly became a couple.
After Maria said yes, the staff at St. Paul's PACE set about providing Maria's wedding dress, a suit for Ronald, decorations and flowers – and of course the wedding location.
"I just don't have the words to say thanks to St. Paul's PACE enough for what they've done for us," the groom said while holding hands with his bride.
Pace staff members did Maria's hair and makeup for the event to make sure Ronald would never forget how his bride looked.
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"She's a wonderful lady," Ronald declared. "I thank St. Paul's PACE for getting us introduced…working together to get us healed and bring us to where we are now."
The groom said he was eight months in a wheel chair, two months with a walker, but his physical therapy has improved so he now only needs a cane.
"I was down, ready to give up on life," Ronald said. "This wonderful woman came into my life somehow. It was a miracle that she did."
