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Bride Asks Parents to Have First Dance at Her Own Wedding Since They Didn’t Have Their Own

By Regina Sienra on August 1, 2023

On the left, a couple has its first dance; on the right, their bride daughter looks amused

Photo: Screenshot from TikTok

Years into their marriage, many couples still look back fondly to their wedding—particularly, that epic first dance as husband and wife. Sadly, not every pair gets one. After eloping at 18, Jacque and Chris Ford never had a ceremony, much less a dance. That's why, when Zoe (their daughter) became a bride, she knew she wanted her parents to have their special moment. And so, during her own wedding, Zoe summoned her parents to have their first dance in front of family and friends.

After opening the dance floor with her brand new husband, Ezra, Zoe made an announcement to the guests. “As some of you may or may not know, my parents ran away when they were 18 and got married in secret,” Zoe can be heard saying in a video documenting the scene. “They never got their own first dance. So, we would like to give that to you guys as a thank you for always being there for us and supporting us.”

The camera then turns to her parents. A visibly emotional Jacque is then led to the dance floor by her husband. After 25 years of marriage, the couple finally had their first dance to Ellie Goulding's cover of “Your Song” by Elton John. The gesture touched the wedding guests, who look moved and amazed as the event unfolds.

According to Insider, the couple renewed their vows in 2017 at Israel's Sea of Galilee. Still, they didn't have a formal ceremony with their loved ones, especially because the bride's mom doesn't really enjoy the spotlight. “We were like, ‘We don't need a wedding,'” Jacque said. “But to have that moment Zoe gave to us… that fulfilled me in a way that I didn't even know I wanted or needed. It was a beautiful moment to have with him.”