A bride's bittersweet dream
By Tracey Curry
tcurry@messengerpostmedia.com

For more...

To read more about Lori and Will 
including a letter Lori wrote about 
her father's terminal cancer visit 
www.warm1013. com. 
Voting for the couple is 
Jan. 30 through Feb. 1.

FAMILY: With only three to six months to live, a Newark man fears he may not be able to walk his daughter down the aisle on her wedding day.

When Lori Proctor was a little girl, she used her Barbie and Ken dolls to act out her dream wedding.

Of course, every girl's dream wedding features a glowing father to walk her down the aisle and give her away. One problem: She didn't have an extra Ken to serve as Dad.

Enter GI Joe - she used her brother's military figurine for the important task.

When Lori's boyfriend, Will Ingerick, slipped a heart-shaped diamond ring on her finger on May 22, 2007 - exactly six years from the day they began dating - her thoughts returned to those pretend nuptials. The Canandaigua couple began saving money and planning their wedding for May 22, 2010.

But in December, their plans were shattered when Loris father, Mel Years, of Newark, was diagnosed with advanced lung cancer. He was given just three to six months to live. Mel, 59, a Wayne County substance abuse counselor for 10 years, was unresponsive to radiation treatment. He and doctors agreed pain management and being comfortable in his home in the care of his beloved wife, Jennifer, were his best options.

'I know that he doesn't have much time, but he told me that his biggest regret is that he can't be GI Joe to walk me down the aisle,' Lori, 40, said.

Lori and Will decided to fast-track their wedding plans so her father could be part of the day. But that gives the pair no time to save, meaning it would be a rather no-frills affair.

Now, however, there's hope the couple will get the wedding of Lori's childhood dreams, complete with her dad walking her down the aisle. She and Will are one of three sets of finalists competing in a wedding giveaway contest through the Nuptial Network of Greater Rochester and the Rochester radio station WARM 101.3 (WRMM-FM).

Couples were invited to share their love stories for a chance at winning a $25,000 wedding package that includes a dress, flowers, music, reception hall, honeymoon travel arrangements and more. In her letter, posted at the radio stations Web site, Lori shared her love story and explains why she wants her father by her side on their wedding day.

The couple were selected and interviewed during 101.3s Wake Up with Tony morning show with host Tony Infantino. From Friday, Jan. 30 through Sunday, Feb. 1, listeners will be asked to log on to the radio station Web site and vote for the winning couple. The rest of the wedding decisions invitations, flowers, tuxes will also will be chosen by listeners who become part of the big day.

Lori learned about the contest from a friend. That was after she had made a public appeal for help with a modest wedding.

She wrote a letter published in the Jan. 16 edition of the Newark Courier-Gazette telling her father's hometown about their plight.

'Every little girl dreams of her wedding day, but for me it will be one of sadness and joy, she wrote. My dad was to walk me down the aisle to give me away, but he will be gone by that time.'

She asked readers to consider donating a wedding dress or making a cake 'so that we can have a small ceremony at his house and he can at least walk me across the living room to give me away. I would love to be able to give my dad a few moments of joy in his life and for him to be able to be a part of my special day.'

Being there is important to Mel, too.

'I only had two daughters,' he said. 'The first one died when she was younger. To be able to give (Lori) away to a man who treats her quite well and is part of the family - it means a lot to have those memories.'

Mel's daughter, Brandy, was killed by a drunk driver in Queensbury, Warren County, in 1997. She was just 24 years old. His 3-year-old granddaughter, Ashley, also died in the crash.

Lori hopes the votes pour in. If they don't win, she'll go back to her original plan of asking for community contributions to help pay for a wedding dress and a cake for a simple ceremony at her fathers home.

But she's hopeful.

'I want this for my dad to let him walk me down the aisle,' she said. 'It's not about the money, it's because if we wait, he won't be with us.'

Mel said he knows he doesn't have much time. Even walking across the living room is a struggle.

'I get a little weaker each day,' he said. 'But I strive to walk her down the aisle.'

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