Teen receives a terminal cancer diagnosis, marries his high school sweetheart

At some point, we have all probably thought about what we would do if we were given just weeks to live: the things we’d do, the places we’d go, the milkshakes we would drink.

Unfortunately, for 19-year-old Dustin Snyder of Valrico, Florida, what is a hypothetical question for most of us became all too real when he was told three weeks ago that his cancer was terminal.

Snyder learned that he had synovial sarcoma, a rare form of cancer, when he was 18. But after months of chemotherapy, he was told the cancer was gone. Earlier this month, however, Snyder experienced severe abdominal cramps and was rushed to the hospital. It was then that they found out the cancer had come back, and that there was nothing that could be done.

“They told him he had just a few weeks and that there was nothing they could do,” family friend Nicole Jordan Roberts told People. “His mom told me she wanted to do as much as she could with him in the little time he had. She wants him to experience as much as he can.”

For Snyder, one of the things he wanted to do was tie the knot with his girlfriend, 21-year-old Sierra Siverio. The two met in middle school and later broke up, but rekindled their romance years later.

“They got back together two years ago before his diagnosis,” Roberts told People. “Dustin knew that she was the one for him.”

So Snyder’s friends and family set about making the last-minute wedding happen. A GoFundMe page set up to cover expenses raised more than $40,000, because how could you not root for these two? Then, on Sunday, Jan. 28, they officially became husband and wife at The Big Red Barn Venue in Oak Hill, Florida. Snyder’s sister posted an entire gallery of photos on her Facebook page:

Despite being in hospice, Snyder found the strength to stand up for his wedding ceremony, and People magazine said the couple danced their first dance to Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect.”

“This day was about being happy,” Roberts told People. “I saw Sierra crying when he danced with his mom and she was crying with a smile across her face. It was hard thinking that this is the last dance she’ll have with her son.”

No matter how long it lasts, we all hope the new couple enjoys their time together.