Paralyzed Dad Gets To Walk His Daughter Down The Aisle Wearing A Bionic Suit [Video]


A proud dad in the U.K. was thrilled to be able to walk his daughter down the aisle at her wedding despite the fact that he is paralyzed. A bionic suit allowed him to stand and walk unaided at the wedding.

Reportedly, Chris Palmer was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer in June 2012 and was told at the time that he would never walk again. However, despite the fact that Palmer was paralyzed from the waist down, he was still determined to walk his daughter Heather down the aisle on her wedding day in Derby in the U.K.

A company called Rex Bionics, which has reportedly helped disabled people to walk in the past, loaned Palmer an exo-skeleton bionic suit, which normally costs £90,000 ($130,000) for the big day.

Wearing the bionic walking suit, which is reportedly dubbed Rex, Palmer’s dream came true, as he walked his daughter Heather down the aisle on Saturday.

However, not only did he get to walk her down the aisle, but the bionic suit also allowed him to stand while he gave his 28-year-old daughter away to her fiancé, Christopher Halls, 28. He could also stand to deliver his speech at the wedding reception and to pose for the wedding photos.

As reported by the Metro, Palmer said of the experience, “It’s wonderful I can do this – it’s fulfilling, something that dads do.”

Speaking of his operation four years ago, he said that when he lay in the hospital, one of the first things that came to mind was his daughter’s future wedding and how he wouldn’t be able to walk her down the aisle.

As reported by the Nottingham Post, things changed after Palmer’s daughter Heather came across the company Rex Bionics, which has invented an exo-skeletal suit called Rex to allow paralyzed people to walk and stand without assistance.

Heather contacted the company straight away to explain her dad’s condition, asking if there was anything they could do. The company was only too happy to help and agreed to teach Christopher how to use the bionic suit prior to loaning it to him for the wedding.

Reportedly Palmer got to wear the suit and try it out while being filmed by the British TV service ITV in an episode of It’s Not Rocket Science.

Heather, who works for Rolls-Royce in Derby, said there are many people out there in the same position as her dad who are unaware this kind of technology even exists. She said she wants them to know that if they have had a life-changing accident or are suffering from a disability, there are options available to them that would allow them to do things they might think impossible.

“It is really overwhelming that my dad is able to walk me down the aisle. I feel really proud of him that he’s come this far and am really grateful to everyone who has helped us along the way.”

Reportedly, they also found the ideal venue for the wedding.

Heather explained, “We really struggled to find unique and stylish venues within the East Midlands that offer full disabled access.”

However, she went on to say that the venue they used was perfect and having her dad walking her down the aisle was even better.

Readers can watch the happy event in the video included below:

[Photo via Flickr by Kimberley Vardeman, cropped and resized/CC BY 2.0]

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