Holding a bouquet of sunflowers, a symbol of Ukrainian national identity, Mariia Bilyk married her childhood sweetheart after months of uncertainty.
Mariia, 23, and her fiancé Vitaly Melynik, 27, were scheduled to marry in Ukraine in June before the Russian invasion halted their plans.
The happy couple recited their vows at Hedsor House in Buckinghamshire, in a ceremony that lasted just two weeks, with just a handful of guests.
Their mothers attended, while their fathers were unable to leave Ukraine due to their age.
Yellow sunflowers lined the aisle and pictures of family and friends from her homeland were placed on the chairs.
Meanwhile, the menu included traditional Ukrainian canapés, homemade vodka and wine sent by relatives.
In lieu of a current list, donations were made to Red Cross humanitarian efforts in the war-torn country.
Mariia and Vitalij, who grew up in nearby towns, had been in a long-distance relationship for several years after he moved to London for work.
She met her fiancé in March after traveling to Poland a few days after the war broke out.
Vitaly recalled: “It was very difficult. I didn’t believe there would be a war, I was sceptical about that, but obviously it started. There was a huge help from the Polish people, really a huge help. They were just you know, giving everything to the people, driving them wherever they need to, they were taking babies and feeding them, everything you needed,” reports Metro.
Here, Mariia started working as a cleaner at the home of Hamish Shephard, founder of Bridebook, a leading wedding planning app.
He helped the happy couple tie the knot on Monday with just a few weeks notice.
Vitaly said: “It was such a coincidence. Hamish, the guy who helped us with all of this, has a housekeeper and that lady I think she was ill or she had taken a holiday, I can’t remember. So he called my auntie’s company where Mariia has been working at, so that’s where they met. Mariia was cleaning his house, and he just showed up to her and she said we had a cancelled wedding and it’s all really sad, and Hamish showed such great support,” reports Metro.
The Bridebook team contacted their network of providers who volunteered and offered their services to the couple free of charge.
Although small, Vitalij said the ceremony was “really special and amazing’.
According to Metro, she added: “Everyone was so friendly, so much kindness and so much support. Everyone did an amazing job, they made the hall look fantastic with a lot of flowers.”
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