Planning a wedding means making plenty of decisions, from flowers and food to the venue, where family and friends will gather to celebrate. A hospital emergency room usually doesn’t top the list for the perfect wedding location, but that’s where one couple recently made their marriage official — with hospital employees helping them celebrate.

John Como, 79, and his fiancée, Diane, were on their way to have their marriage certificate notarized Sept. 5 when a call from his doctor changed their plans.

According to Huntsville Hospital, John’s primary care doctor was concerned about his recent bloodwork results and told him to go straight to the emergency department. The hospital shared what happened next in a Facebook post.

Nurse practitioner Beth Gates was assigned to care for John. When she learned about the couple’s marriage plans and saw how upset Diane was, she offered to see whether a licensed notary was working at the hospital. The hospital shared the couple’s story on Facebook.

“They were such a sweet couple, it was the least I could do,” Gates said.

She found Shoyna Alexander, a licensed notary who was on duty nearby in the hospital’s Security Office. Alexander came to exam room C-29 to witness John and Diane sign their marriage certificate.

With the paperwork signed, John leaned forward in his hospital bed and kissed his new bride.

The hospital employees then set about giving the newlyweds a spontaneous reception.

Licensed practical nurse Keria Lightfoot walked to the nearby Publix for flowers, cupcakes, plastic champagne flutes, and sparkling white grape juice.

Samantha Ring, an ER patient and family services representative, fashioned original wedding rings from yellow paper. She wrote “Just Married” on Diane’s ring and their wedding date, “9/5/26,” on John’s.

ER attendant Carter Kimbrough kept their glasses filled, while fellow attendant Nola Bearden made a “Just Married” sign and invited clinical staff to add their best wishes.

“It just warmed our hearts that they would care enough to do that,” John said. “We were in this terrible situation of having to go to the Emergency Department, but they made it a golden moment.”

Sarah Slatton, an emergency department nurse leader who was there for the wedding, said the employees wanted to honor the couple’s wishes and make the day memorable.

“It’s easy to become cynical and be calloused, and I love that our team doesn’t let that happen,” Slatton said. “You could just see on their faces how much those little acts of kindness meant to them, and it made me really proud.”

John, a retired Army colonel, was admitted to the hospital’s Oncology Unit and remained hospitalized until Sept. 23. He praised the care he received during his stay.

“People need to know that the staff at Huntsville Hospital has a heart,” he said.

Diane was a longtime acquaintance whom John began dating after his wife of more than four decades died about a year ago.

After his release from the hospital, John was looking forward to life with Diane. The hospital shared that the newlyweds plan to build a home together in Fairhope.

Sherri Blevins is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You may contact her at [email protected].