Bride Anna Claire Waldrop and groom James “Jimbo” Waldrop of New Albany

Quadriplegic Bride Weds Her High School Sweethear

Meet Anna Claire and James Waldrop; Last year they had their lives thrown off-course -- after a drunk driver decided to crash into their car and leave Anna a quadriplegic.

The couple met in fifth grade, and James courted Anna to be his girlfriend before they started sixth grade.  It was love at first sight for James, and the happy couple started officially dating in 11th grade, where they have attended the same high school.

Middle school photo.

In their junior year at Albany High School, they started planning a future together, and they decided to go to the same university, where Anna Claire studied speech pathology.

It was Valentine’s Day last year when tragedy struck. Anna and James were driving home late from a friend’s party when a car started speeding up from behind them, with their bright lights on.

Jimbo proposed to Anna Claire barely a month before the tragic accident happened.

Anna, recalling the incident, said that when the drunk driver hit their car, James flew through the sunroof, while she stayed in the car flipping four times.

After the accident, Anna's life would never be the same, and she would spend the rest of her life confined to a wheelchair. While James managed to survive the accident without an incident, Anna didn't.

Wedding cake: Groom and a bride in wheelchair

Before the accident, James proposed to Anna on a romantic picnic in Alabama, the ring hidden at the bottom of a picnic basket.

Their wedding plans were already in place before the accident, and Anna Claire had a lot of questions on her mind. But instead of letting circumstances ruin her big wedding night, she decided she would keep going and made her upcoming wedding her motivation to get better.

Anna Claire and Jimbo on their wedding day together with their family and close friends.

James supported Anna both physically and emotionally. Anna said she never once saw James getting upset, and he was always strong and confident.

There was even one instance that she recalled when Anna's parents asked James to reconsider their wedding plans. But Jim said they would get married, and they will live like husband and wife like any other couple.

James was able to get a job with a local school that allowed him to get a mortgage on their home and be able to be accessible for Anna.

True love’s kiss

Their friends and family were very supportive, although there were some who thought that their wedding would get pushed off. But their friends helped the couple push through to achieve their dream wedding regardless of their circumstances.

When the wedding day finally arrived, Anna was able to move her left arm and wrists, and the beautiful bride rolled herself down the aisle in her wheelchair surrounded by love.

After their wedding, Anna said they were happily married, and she is now working on becoming a speech therapist. The same course she was studying before the accident.

Happy Together

Though most quadriplegics stay at home, Anna wanted to work. She said that is her end goal is that she just wants to be happy and live like an ordinary couple as much as possible.

Keep it up, Anna! Thank you for being an inspiration!

“Unconditional love really exists in each of us. It is part of our deep inner being. It is not so much an active emotion as a state of being. It's not 'I love you' for this or that reason, not 'I love you if you love me.' It's love for no reason, love without an object.”

- Ram Dass