A New York couple married Sunday evening at Rockefeller Center in Midtown after a chance supermarket encounter with a social media influencer that sparked a viral video and an outpouring of support.
Peter Napolitano and Elena Volkova’s wedding came together in just two weeks. Volkova has stage 4 metastatic breast cancer, and Napolitano recently lost his job. “Wish Upon a Wedding” helped organize the celebration, with 34 vendors donating their time and services.
The Long Island couple’s journey to the altar began at a supermarket near their home in Port Washington. Social media influencer Keegan Gordon randomly approached them with an offer: $500 or five minutes to fill their shopping cart.
Gordon did not know about Volkova’s cancer. When Napolitano shared that he had lost his job, that Volkova was ill and that he wanted to marry her, the encounter took a different turn. Their video went viral, and people began looking for ways to help.
“This whole experience has been surreal,” Volkova told NBC New York. “It’s been amazing, the amount of support that we’ve gotten. The amount of people that’ve shown up for us. I mean it’s amazing.”
Wish Upon a Wedding organizes weddings for couples in which one or both partners are facing a terminal illness. The couple’s celebration marked the organization’s 375th wish.
“We have 34 vendors that have signed up… to donate their time, their services, their love,” said Lacey Wicksall of Wish Upon a Wedding. “Rockefeller Center fully donated this venue to us.”
Everything from the dress to the band, flowers and engagement ring was donated.
“Everyone’s just like ‘whatever it takes,'” said wedding planner Xin Ruo Huang. “There was no limit to how giving our teams were.”
Gordon was also invited to the wedding.
“It shows that everyone wants to be kind,” Gordon said. “But a lot of people have a lot of things going on in their lives… so for me, being a kindness creator — I’m very priviledged to be able to do that.”
Volkova is approaching the five-year mark of her illness. At the celebration, she shared a first dance with Napolitano, surrounded by people who have supported them.
Asked about what comes next, Volkova said, “Living and growing together. Hopefully, it will be for some time now.”
This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC New York. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC New York journalist edited the article for publication.
