Dying mum sees son marry

A FAMILY organised a wedding in just two days after deciding to bring it forward to grant a mother's dying wish – to see her son wed.

Pete Hansen and Janine Croft, of Humberston, had planned to get married on Friday, August 30 – until Peter's poorly mum, Maggie, took a turn for the worse.

Maggie is losing her battle with cancer and doctors say she does not have long left, so on Tuesday, the family took the bold decision to move the wedding forward to make sure that she would be there.

Cleethorpes Town Hall said they had a spare spot and on Thursday, Peter tied the knot with his blushing bride – and his mum was there to see it happen.

Pete, 53, said: "It means a hell of a lot to me that she could be here – but to her it means everything."

Bride Janine said: "It just made us realise that we needed to do it now. We didn't just want her there – we wanted her to be able to take it in and enjoy it.

"Maggie has been talking about the wedding for months and she said she had been holding on, just so she could be there.

"But we couldn't have done it without help from the family and all the people that offered their services at the last minute – it's really touched me.

"People I hadn't even met before were at my house doing my make-up and hair – at the drop of a hat."

Sister of the bride Linda Wilkinson, 51, of Carr Lane, said: "Janine always said that if there were just four people at the wedding – her, Peter, and both their mums – then she would have been happy.

"That's why it was so important to get this done, although we weren't sure if it would be possible at such short notice.

"We were surprised by the response we got from businesses who were falling over themselves to help when they heard the story.

"Vic Danby did the make-up, Denis's in Hainton Avenue did the flowers, Martin Steele is here today taking pictures, and I think they deserve some recognition."

The helpers did such a good job that Janine could barely believe it when she looked in the mirror.

She said: "I was surprised at how beautiful I look – if you saw me on the street on any other day, you wouldn't believe it's me."

And Pete agreed, adding: "I think she looks absolutely gorgeous."

The couple are delaying their honeymoon to spend more time with Maggie.