After the couple decided to take the next step in their relationship and have a warm wedding ceremony, Dave McLoughlin and Michelle Crowe (from Ireland) were soon faced with the heartbreaking reality of parting ways when the bride passed away just five days after their wedding due to cancer.
The “Special” Wedding Day
McLoughlin and Crowe had been engaged for seven years. They had been through many ups and downs during this time, but never let go of each other.
Crowe was diagnosed with breast cancer in September 2022 at the age of 33, according to SWNS news agency. She underwent chemotherapy and had a mastectomy in February of this year.
The disease took a turn for the worse a month later, prompting the couple to decide to hold their wedding at the hospital chapel on March 20, just five days before Crowe passed away.
McLoughlin said it was a very special wedding day, in part due to the hospital staff who helped decorate Crowe’s hospital room.
“She loved her children more than anything,” according to McLoughlin. Crowe was a strong woman and the “happiest person,” he said. “No matter how many times she was knocked down, she always got back up,” he recounted.
The two met when they were 16 and 17 years old, and reunited in 2004 when they coincidentally bumped into each other in Tipperary, Ireland. The couple welcomed their first child, a son named Cillian, together in 2009.
McLoughlin had previously proposed to Crowe in May 2016, but a family tragedy at the time had caused their wedding plans to be postponed. In January of last year, the family received happy news when their second son, Oisin, was born.
Their joy was short-lived, however, as just a few months later, Crowe discovered a growing lump in her breast. She was diagnosed with breast cancer, with an 8cm tumor on her left breast. Crowe underwent a mastectomy in February of this year, as the tumor did not shrink after chemotherapy. Just a few weeks later, the vicious disease had spread to her liver, causing her to suffer from excruciating pain.
Reflecting on their wedding day, McLoughlin said, “My wife looked truly stunning. I’m here for the two boys. She loved the children more than anything…”