In a tear-jerking moment that was captured on camera, a bride from Alabama surprised her groom and his deaf parents by signing her vows, making their wedding day incredibly special.
“I got super emotional,” Michael Kulick, 23, told The Epoch Times. “It was just like a really special moment for me [to see] her recognize my parents in that way.”
Michael, a promotions producer at WVUA News Media, and Kelsey, a lab scientist in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, first met at a lifeguard-training summer camp in 2018 and began talking to each other at a CPR training class.
Michael charmed Kelsey with his jokes and Kelsey, who thought he was funny right away, told her friends she was going to marry him. Not long afterward, Michael had the same feeling and texted a friend to say, “She could be the person I marry someday.”
Over the summer, as they ended up working on shifts together, their relationship blossomed and they began dating. Through college, they maintained a long-distance relationship. They survived the busy semesters each year with Kelsey’s schedule being jam-packed with volleyball practice and games. Meanwhile, during the lighter semesters, they drove an hour and a half to see each other and spent a lot of time on the phone.
Over the years, Michael and Kelsey created some unforgettable memories together. Kelsey recalls one of their first mission trips together when she saw Michael giving and serving in the community with any task they needed to be done. Meanwhile, Michael looks back fondly at a 2019 summer camp in Arkansas when they both spent nine hours driving in the car—and then the whole summer—together.
“Being with her made it fun,” Michael said. “The memories that we made on that trip were great.”
Some of their very sweetest memories, however, have been the recent ones. In 2019, Michael made up his mind to start saving for an engagement ring and decided to propose to the love of his life in January 2021. The location he chose for the special occasion was a spot that had been close to Kelsey’s heart.
Kelsey had always wished to get married under an old tree that was on her family’s land for the most part of her life and had mentioned it to Michael very early on in their relationship.
However, one summer, the tree was struck by lightning and had fallen apart. Although the tree was gone, Michael had other plans.
There, where the old tree had once stood alone in the field, Michael set up an oasis with lighting and blankets to create a romantic atmosphere that was perfect to propose to Kelsey.
He then drove Kelsey—who was completely unaware of what was going to unfold—to the spot.
“I was completely fooled,” said Kelsey. Thinking they were going to meet friends at a restaurant, she was confused as to why Michael was ignoring the GPS directions. She was stunned when they arrived at her family’s land. Michael showed Kelsey a video he had made and then popped the big question. Needless to say, Kelsey said yes.
For the next 10 months, Kelsey threw herself into wedding planning and preparations. In November 2021, the couple tied the knot at the Gore Creek Wedding Venue in Boaz. Kelsey not only organized and directed the entire thing, but she also managed to plan some really precious moments.
“There was just a lot of like really special things that she did that day that made me really emotional,” Michael said. “I’m not really a crier, but I think I cried like six times.”
However, the most special of them all was the signing of the vows.
Both of Michael’s parents were born deaf and all of his mother’s siblings are also deaf. Michael had learned sign language before he learned to speak, and then he learned English from his older sister and grandparents, who can all hear. Kelsey, who had learned about his parents’ condition very early in the relationship, had always wanted to learn sign language. Michael taught her a few things, but always remained an interpreter between Kelsey and his parents during their relationship.
For their wedding, Kelsey wanted to do something special for Michael’s parents and thus enlisted the help of one of Michael’s aunts in South Carolina who was both fluent in ASL and in English. After obtaining a video on how to sign her vows, Kelsey diligently practiced it leading up to the wedding and even before she walked down the aisle. She was so nervous about the delivery of her vows that she didn’t hear a word the pastor said.
“I wanted it to be a special moment, and I wanted it to really be for his parents and for him,” Kelsey said.
As Kelsey spoke her vows to Michael while simultaneously signing them, Michael’s expression turned from surprise to appreciation, followed by joyful tears.
“I got caught off guard,” he said.
As for Michael’s parents, although he didn’t get to see their initial reaction to the special gesture, he learned afterward that it meant a lot to them.
Chandler Smith, 26, the event’s wedding videographer, told The Epoch Times: “It was the coolest experience getting to witness such a pure act of love and respect towards her husband and his family.
“It was such an emotional moment, and seeing Michael’s reaction made it so special. Getting to capture and be part of moments like that is what makes my job so special!”
“I just knew it was too special not to share,” she said. “They are both so genuine and the fact that Kelsey did it just with the intention to show so much love to Michael and his family makes it even more special.”
