3-Year-Old Cancer Survivor Becomes Flower Girl at Bone Marrow Donor's Wedding
Hayden Hatfield Ryals donated her bone marrow to save the life of baby Skye Savren-McCormick on July 29, 2016. Almost two years later, Skye returned the favor by sharing her charm for her donor's wedding.
On June 9, Skye became the flower girl when Hatfield Ryals tied the knot with Adrian Ryals in Hartford, Alabama. She and her parents Talia and Todd Savren-McCormick traveled all the way from Ventura, California to attend the special occasion.
According to Skye's mother, the 3-year-old enjoyed every moment during the wedding.
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"It was so sweet and she was really excited to do it. I put her one the ground and she took one step and then took a giant handful of flowers and tossed them on the ground," Skye's mother said in an interview with People. "It was very heartwarming. We're so grateful to Hayden, she saved Skye's life. She was really cute," she went on to say.
Skye's special link with Hatfield Ryals started in 2016 through the Be the Match program. The young girl was diagnosed with juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia in March of that same year, just before her first birthday. She had her first bone marrow transplant courtesy of Ryals several months after her diagnosis, then received a vital infusion of cells afterward.
In a separate interview with ABC News, Skye's mother said that her baby might not be able to make it until her final transplant if Ryals was not there to help.
"She was that sick," she stated. "I feel like Hayden is such a huge success in why Skye was able to beat leukemia," she added.
The Savren-McCormicks learned that the Ryalses wanted Skye to be part of their special day when the bride sent her a card for her third birthday. Inside the card was a note that invited the young cancer survivor to be the flower girl for their wedding.
The new bride told Parents why she wanted Skye to be part of her wedding entourage. "I wanted them to know how honored I would be and that they're that special to my heart because I've felt a special connection with her since the transplant date," Ryals stated.
Both the Savren-McCormicks and the Ryalses vowed to keep each other in their lives forever.
