This Might Make You Cry
Filed under: Sad Sad
This is so sad, yet touching.
Reece Fleming was diagnosed with leukaemia back in 2004 when he was just 4 years old.
He battled the disease for years until this May, when doctors gave the 8 year old boy only a few weeks to live.
The family decided to try and help him achieve most of his goals before he would pass. And one of those was to marry his school sweetheart, Elleanor Purgslove.
Reece's mother said "When we found out that we only had a few weeks with him we tried to do absolutely everything with him that we could. Him and Ellie had been 'special friends' for a couple of years but then they broke up. We said we'd have a pirate party, and Ellie came. She went to visit Reece a few times in hospital as well."
Then during a recent laser tag party, Reece "proposed" to his little friend.
After she accepted, their parents arranged a pretend wedding at Reece's home (not the kids pictured above).
The families went out to dinner in the mayor's limousine and organized the wedding with rings and even a fictional certificate.
The kids got married on July 4th. And Reece told his mom, "I can go now," after his wedding wish had been fulfilled.
His mom added, "He was so proud of her, and we were proud of them both."
The following day after the wedding, Reece died at home with his family.
Soooooo sad!
During the funeral, the mourners followed a horse-draw hearse on foot.
His mom added, "Even on the Saturday that he died, he got out of bed and walked to the sofa. He always tried walking, right to the end, so we thought if he walked for us then we would walk for him."
What an amazing little boy.
great story perez. it is nice to see things like this on the website too. keep up the good work
PEREZ THAT WAS ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL…JUST BEAUTIFUL…BLESS THE LITTLE BOY'S HEART AND HIS PARENTS.
WOW I can not stop crying. How freakin sweet! Good for those parents.
Re: Hanna – idiot did you see the word "fictional" when they mentioned a marriage certificate? cause it was pretend to make him happy. it was his dying wish, why do you have to be an asshole?
Awww that breaks my heart. At least he got married before and the whole thing. Even if just a little kid thing. All little children should get to do that before they pass. Have a wonderful full life, in their innocent, yet fast going to the other side.
I was moved to tears…
What a bittersweet story. To all of the haters out there….this wasn't a real marriage(as if anyone should have to tell you that, they were
Its beautiful that both parents went along with this and allowed him to fulfill a dream that most of us have(getting married). Also, I believe that Ellie's parents explained everything to her and she can be proud as she gets older to have been apart of this experience.
Re: Hanna – it was in England actually
this is so sad but makes me happy as well. at least his family was trying to fufill his life to the end!
very very sad when any child dies. Just wonder if this was his idea and not the parents who needed to feel their child lived a full life-it did say that the parents wanted him to live out his goals. My children did not have goals at 8 other then what they were going to do that day. I think it was the parent's goals so they would not bear guilt for not doing everything with their child. Their child died at 8, he did not live anywhere near a full life. But it is fine as long as he was happy and the little girl knows it was pretend. But, as one other poster said, he might have been more happier going to disneyworld.
Um, didn't anyone ever play pretend games growing up?? The girl is NOT a widow because she was NEVER really married! She knew he was sick and dying! UGH. So what, next time you see a kid playing house are you going to take them aside and ask them to consider the financial ramifications of homeownership? Or if you see a little girl with a baby doll, are you going to wag your finger at her for being an irresponsible young mother? Get the sticks out of your asses!
oh soooo sad
it did make me cry
In their own words of Noel Gallagher song:
"LIVE FOREVER"
Rest in peace……………………..
lou
that's sweet and heart breaking. i love the innocence of children and their zest for everything life offers and adults take for granted.
and, yes, i cried
i actually cried reading a perez blog
No, the little girl is not legally a widow, but that's the problem she is emotionally a widow without ANYONE, not even her parents validating her unique feelings. My guess is that his parents wanted their goal of him being "married" fulfilled, not his and used this little girl to complete that goal. As a parent I would say "that while I am heartbroken that you son is dying, I need to consider the emotional needs of my daughter."
Weeping as I type.
omg. i have goosebumps. that is so sad it made me want to cry but im happy he is in a better place, free from pain.
i can not believe all the negative talk about this story nobody knows the whole story but both sets of parents it kills me how everybody jumps to the the negative an jump to conclusions sad bunch of people
Re: Hanna –
I know its already been said, but boy Hanna, you are a class A, 100% idiot. Do you REALLY think that this was a 'marriage' based on something other than the pure, innocent love of a little boy and his school sweetheart? Do you suggest they should have gone to pre-marital counseling first? Maybe take some classes on marital relationships? Maybe sat down with a financial planner to work out their portfolio? Maybe Mom should have sat down and discussed what was going to happen on their 'wedding night'? How dense can you get? The little boy DIED the next day, for the love of God. And how dare you try and suggest that Americans (even though these two were from the UK) have any less respect for marriage because a little dying boy was able to have one last dream filled before he passed. You are a heartless little bitch, darling.
Awwww This is so sad yet very cute that he wanted to marry her.
=(
I about cried =(
When was the last time you played house and your parents bought real clothes and furniture for that pretend game? That is the difference. Instead of the kids having a little friend "marry them" as my own children do, the parents went all out to make it seem REAL. That is what distinguishes this situation.
That is the sweetest story. My heart just melted! Prayers to his family and his wife’s family! Soooo Sweet!
Re: Hanna –
you dumb slut! you obviously didn't read the entire story. it wasn't a REAL marriage! just pretend for the sake of the dieing boy. shut up you dumb bitch!!!
Re: Carla –
You're so right! Just when I thought my life sucked. I will give my babies extra kisses today.
So sweet and so sad, got me all teary-eyed
Oh my god… I really did just cry. So sweet
wow this is a beautiful story. RIP little Reece. and by the way, this little girl is not going to be grieving the loss of her "husband" - she's going to be grieving the loss of a good friend of hers. a girl that age would not take a pretend wedding seriously - it's like a dress-up, make believe game. they weren't in a real relationship - he was her FRIEND and it's possible for children to lose their friends to illnesses or accidents at any time.
wow..this is very sad. Makes me appreciate the little things:( crying…..
so sad.. what a special little boy
Ok so i started to cry during the first sentence. What a tragic story and I cant believe what a strong little boy he was. Im 18 and I would of handled it way worse. May god bless him and his family.That was the most touching story ive heard.
Re: Chris – i totally agree!
OMG I'm crying!!!!
Call me a hater, but when my kids play wedding and my girls do, I don't get involved with wedding certificates and limousines. It seems that this was more for the parents than the boy.
This is the most touching thing iv read in such a long time. My prayers are with the family..
I would never tell an eight year old boy he was going to die within the next couple of weeks. Sheesh…..
it wasnt a real wedding people. it as atged and made for the lil boy to believe that he was married so he could die a happy little boy. what would you have done if you knew you only had a few weeks left to live and the one dream for everyone is to get married? of course your gonna let them get married. the little girl will be fine. she techincally isnt married but the thought of it is bittersweet.
rip lil boy its a sweet and sad story. i had a best friend that died about 7 months ago. and i wish he could have this before he died. he wanted a family and a wife. i wish i would have given it to him.
re kate -
Unless the little girl's parents made more of it than this article suggests, she probably saw the marriage as pretend play. Children pretend to get married all the time. She is too young to understand that marriage is supposed to be forever and the adult expectations of marriage.
this is very sad.
im 16 years old and i have battled cancer since i was 12.
when i was 14 i was considered to be in remission.
this is a very inspiring story.
it made me cry because i remembered that that could've been me.
Did the parents let them fuck too?
aww this is sooo sweet!
rip reece
Re: Hanna –
What a fucktard!
poor baby!! I didn't want to cry so early, Perez! That's such a sweet thing to do, and I'm so happy her mom allowed her to have the "wedding." There are still good people in this world =-)
OMG this is soo sad..but really sweet that he got his last wish!
I LAUGHED AT A BEHEADED MARINE HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHA
I'm with Kate. Although it was sad that the little boy would never grow up to realize milestones in his life like marraige, the girls parents were really irresponsible not to consider how this fake "marraige " and the boy's death would affect her.
This made me cry, God Bless his soul.
I remember being a child and playing a pretend wedding with my friends. We all played "marriage" or "teacher"…we had imaginations. I had my share of "boyfriends". This was an adorable idea in the fact that Reece felt like an adult, he was celebrated, and he did something he knew he would never actually do in real life. His parents deserve a pat on their backs because can you imagine how hard it is on them to go through such a loss. The little girl is not a widow in any means, she grew up with this boy and knew he was going to go soon. She would be sad anyway when he did die. At least she will know when she gets slightly older and understands better that she helped him pass a happy little boy who just wanted to grow up and be like his parents.
Re: David –
While I appreciate your concerns for the rights and equality of women, all I can say is that you will never know what it is like to be a woman or a grieving mother. The things parents do for their children is quite the amazing thing, and I'm positive the parents of that sweet little girl and boy discussed the situation thoroughly before letting the children go through with it. What we need to remember is that this is life lost, and we should be sending prayers and kind words to the survivors, not critisicms.
The problem is that you just invalidated the feelings of the little girl. While YOU as an adult believe that she only has friend feelings, she believes herself to be his wife. While the relationship seems clear to you they are often not clear to a child and that is the problem I have with this event.
Is it sad that this child died? Yes, unbelievably so but it seems more that his parents perhaps put a wedding together that they would not receive at an appropriate age. One person liken it to "they are only playing house." The problem is that when kids play house and wedding, parents DON'T get involved. In this case, the parents became excessively involved holding what looked to be a REAL wedding regardless of how pretend it was.
Re: Mandy – SWEET! Thanks for taking the time to write that.
The families sound wonderfully supportive and creative in how they tried to make this young boy face his impending death. It is very likely that this made the little girl feel like a very special friend and an important part of her friend's last days on earth. However, from a psychological perspective, the burden the fake wedding (a commitment ceremony no matter how you label it) may have placed on such a young girl should be cause for some concern. My condolences to the family. So heart breaking and how ever they decided to handle it is not for those of us who have not been there, to judge.
omg my eyes got so watery…
rip
what a beautiful story
oh my, I started to cry…so sad, but so nice that he was able to go happy, he was fulfilled.
Re: kate –
When someone is dying, you will do ANYTHING within your power to help them fulfill a dream, especially if that person is your child. No parent should have to suffer the loss of their child, especially at 8 years old. I don't think the parents were irresponsible in any way. That little girl would mourn the loss of her best friend no matter if they had a pretend wedding or not. I think she is a wonderful, well brought up child who is able to feel compassion for others and was willing to help make her special friend's dream come true. I know a lot of adults who wouldn't even consider "marrying" their dying best friend even if it was their last wish, because as adults we become selfish and would only think "but how will *I* feel after he's gone?"
Even though this story is sad, I found it to be the "feel good" story of the week. That is one special little girl, and her parents should be proud of what she did for her friend.
Ya Perez this did make me shed a tear
Slow news day? Made up story for sure. Boohoo movie of the week material.
so sad I actually started to cry
awww thats so sad =( but atleast they got to fufill his dream and he died happy
So sweet - but so heartbreaking at the same time (I definitely shed a couple tears)…..
It's wonderful that the little boy got one of his biggest wishes before he died.
I am sitting at my desk at work crying into my lunch.
Re: David – A. You have no way of knowing how the little girl is coping or how her parents are helping her mourn as a "widow," so stop fretting over something you don't know about B. At the end of the day, she's not your child and you can preach all you want about "good parenting" but it's not going to change anything that happened.
This is very touching and so nice for both families to agree to help this boy achieve something he really wanted before he passed. It is a lovely story.
And for that person who said that we as Americans are devaluing marriage because of this story - first off, it was a pretend wedding for an 8 year old, and second, this story was reported by a paper in the UK as it occurred in Derby.
That's all.
Re: kate – Always has to be an idiot like you to spoil something. Shut up already Kate, you sanctamonious moron.
You will never know what it is like to be a father and grieving father. That said, I think it was still irresponsible for the parents to get involved. If the children wanted a wedding, let them have it doing so as children, NOT AS ADULTS. The kids could still have has a wedding without involvement. It is the excessive involvement where I take issue and which appear PARENT-led, not child-led.
This is sooo creepy how could the parents allow such a thing…they are children! Children no matter how sick, should stick to child things not marriage! That poor child will be psychologically affected for the rest of her life! It did not even make me feel sad, I am completely shocked that so many people find it "sweet" "touching"…What is this world coming to?
ummmm…all i can say is owww…such a heart warming, but sad story. it really hurts to think about all of the other innocent children that are sick as well.
Re: Lulu – Actually i saw photos of the "wedding" in a newspaper, The Daily Mirror, yesterday, so it looked pretty real to me.
I just started cryin at my desk. omg thats so sad. An that "I can Go Now" comment , just broke my heart.
So sad! Yet inspiring to live everyday like it is your last.
The difference is that you don't care what happens to the little girl. It's all about the poor dying boy. I hate to break this to you, but we are all dying and with that in mind we need to also care for the living. It is outrageously sad that this little boy died so young, but because of that we should throw the little girl under the bus? Apparently so. What should have happened is that the parents should have allowed the kids to plan their own pretend wedding and not be involved, then I would not have had any issue.
that is the cutest and saddest little story.
you were right, it did make me cry
This story actually brought tears to my eyes.The things we complain about every day,and there are CHILDREN going through far worse&still have more hope&gumption than all of us combined.
Tons of positive thoughts are going out to this family!!They were lucky to have such a special boy:)
gosh, it is soooo heartbreaking
Re: Hanna –
wow youre a fucking dumb bitch "hanna"
rip reece.
Ok I totally welled up here at work….
this is so sweet!!
Aww so sweet but sad
I thought that this was absolutely lovely. Too many people are forced to leave this World by way of violence and hatred….and, this little boy did it with happiness, peace, compassion and love. I am quite sure that both sets of parents had a long talk with their children, beforehand…what parent, in their right mind wouldn't? So, I seriously doubt that the little girl will suffer any psychological ramifications. She did a wonderful, compassionate and loving thing, for her friend.
What a great story! My cousin died of Leukemia when she was 3. I think this boy's parents are great and his little wife's parents are as well for making his dream come true. What a sweetheart. God bless them all.
I don't know how many of you read the entire story in other sites besides Perez but it doesn't sound like the girl thought she was pretending to get married, Reece proposed a day before the pretend weeding, they where taken there in limos and they had a dinner with the mayor to celebrate their marriage… now that's creepy!
I know that a mom will do anything to make sure their kid has all his dreams come true and that's really sweet but what about the girls parents? How hard is it to explain to a kid that her special friend's death wish is to have a pretend weeding with her, go through all this painful process and find out he is dead the next day… isn't that confusing??? I guess to me at my age (I am in my 20's) would be really really confusing! Since I am a grown up i will handle this better than an 8 year old kid… for all of you who said this is just pretend and let go well imagine having kids and having to tell your 8 year old that she has to go through all of this… very hard right? This girl is going to need a lot of therapy while growing up, I really hope Reece parent's will stay in touch with her and give her also some sort of emotional support.
oh please that shit is so fake. wtf
this is soooo sad, what a remarkable little boy.
Jeeze, way to make me sob this morning, Perez.
The kid had cancer for 4 years im sure she understood he would die and it was probably more for him then her. Didn't you ever pretend to have girlfriends and boyfriends in school its just pretend jeez. young kids are smarter then you all obviously seem to belive. Now ill go stop crying
Re: kate – Give me a break. She would have been devestated no matter what. She will have this story to tell for the rest of her life of how she absolutely made this boy's last dream come true. Don't go overboard with your judgement. The world needs more sweet and thoughtful people like these.
Re: Hanna – Ok dumm a*ss its not about what he knows or doesnt know about marriage. It was like his dying wish. I think it was sweet of the families to do something like this being that they knew he would not reach the age to actually get married! WHAT AN IDIOT!
=(
thats sooo sad
=(
=(
did he get to fuck her on their wedding day? Hope so!
Most of the comments on this topic are what they should be. Seeing this pretend wedding as what it was. I am sure that the parents didn't push this little boy in anyway, if he'd wanted to go to disney world they would have taken him. Quit adding your two cents in or your thoughts about what you would have done. It wasn't you and it wasn't your children. All children are different and dream different dreams. If your child was dying at the age of eight, disney world may not be his biggest dream. I think both sets of parents acted total responsibily in this and what a lucky little boy to who parents and friends who care so much for him. May God help this family cope and overcome their grief. If you haven't lost a child, then just shut the you know what up.
Re: Hanna – That is not the point here at all. Ever heard about "imagination"? These kids were 8 years old. They are not stupid and they know exactly what is going on. God, some people just have to ruin the moment all together…
I hope he got the chance to poke her before he bought the big one!
Re[re=2640775]Re: Hanna –
you are so ignorant obviously you didn't read the story its a FAKE marriage and honestly it was the sweetest thing for the little girl to do for him and after they got "married" he said he could go now, obviously it was something that meant a great deal to him
pshhh u fuckn moron
This is a truly heartbreaking story….thank god for the parent's doing what made their little boy happy - I am in awe of them and wish them all the best…
My heart goes out to the family - rest in peace little angel….
that is the stupidest thing ever - what the fuck does a 8 year know about marriage and why would that be important to him - that is pure adult crap projected onto a kid - the stupid mom has probably said for years "you and little jane doe can grow up and get married some day..blah, blah, blah!" - YUKOOOOOOOOOOOOOO to he max!!!!
Re: Hanna –
You are such a fucking "Cunt". It was pretend. Didn't you read the whole story, or are you so unbelivably stupid that you do not understand the word "pretend". You are such a fucking waste of space. It's very scary that there are fucktards like you out there walking among us.
Re: Hanna – guess there's always going to be an ignorant, unsympathetic cunt in all the goes on in the world. you should kill yourself, and soon!
Re: Anony – And tons of positive thoughts to the little"bride",too.I hope she remembers this for the rest of her life&looks back to only think of happy thoughts.What a special friend she was!!!:)
I JUST CRIED SO BAD