(May 8) - "This is beyond my wildest dreams. This is exactly how I wanted my wedding to be," said the bride.
But the nuptials of Dante White, 28, and Nhiahni Chestnut, 39, in Wahington, D.C. last weekend was not the average wedding. It took the kindness of a church congregation to pull it off, reported AFP.
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White and Chestnut met nine years ago while they were both living on the streets of the nation's capital. And that's where the two -- both unemployeed -- still live today. To survive they sleep over steam grates, use public facilities to wash and stay warm and frequent meal trucks to eat. The Washington Post reported that their chocolate-brown pit bull Missy provides the couple with protection and brings in some hand-outs.
The couple attended a Bible study and meal program run by Grace Episcopal Church in Washington's Georgetown neighborhood. AFP reported that it was there that White revealed to fellow parishioner Margaret Davis how much he wished he could afford to marry the woman he loved.
"Everyone at the church feels strongly that you don't need to have money to get married," said Davis, who took the lead in organizing the wedding. "In good Grace church congregation fashion, everyone got behind the idea: one person managed flowers, I helped with the wedding rings, one woman made the cake, someone helped with the tux and someone else with the bride's gown."
And just like other couples on their big day, the husband and wife took photos afterwards and enjoyed their first dance as two local jazz musicians played. Another church member gave them a two-night honeymoon stay at a nearby hotel.
The church members know though that it is the next step that is even more important: trying to find the couple affordable housing. "Love will get them through so much, but at the end of the day they do need housing," Davis said.
The Post reports that Nhiahni hopes marriage will help them qualify for subsidized housing, for which they have been stuck on waiting lists: "I know, after everything dies down, we'll still be on the outside."
For more on White and Chestnut's wedding and stories, check out AFP's report and The Washington Post.
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