Employee Wedding Ceremony Takes Place At Metro Health Amid COVID-19 Disruptions

WYOMING, Mich., April 14, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- While the COVID-19 pandemic has put a halt to much of our lives, one thing it can't stop is love and marriage. Melanie Bork and Bradley Wernette, two Metro Health employees, decided to not let COVID-19 get in the way of their April wedding.  

"We can say that we're more excited about the marriage than one day of a party and a wedding. We're more excited about the rest of our lives and a marriage," Bork said.

Melanie Bork, a nurse in Metro Health's post-anesthesia recovery unit, and Bradley Wernette, a physician assistant in neurosurgery, were set to marry on April 17 in front of 110 family and friends in Petoskey, Michigan. Due to the COVID-19 closures, that was made impossible.

They decided to get married anyway, and picked their employer, Metro Health, as the new venue. The couple tied the knot Monday evening with two co-workers as witnesses, and hospital chaplain, John DeVries, officiating the ceremony. The hospital was able to stream the ceremony for the couple's family members to tune in.

John DeVries has been the chaplain at Metro Health for eight years and has married other people at the hospital, but it is normally when a patient is too sick to have a wedding anywhere else. He says this is a much nicer experience, despite the less-than-perfect venue.

"It is really nice to have a wedding to focus on and to show there are good things going on during this unprecedented time," DeVries said.

The couple hopes to have a party with family and friends this summer to celebrate their nuptials, in addition to taking their postponed honeymoon to Hawaii.

About Metro Health – University of Michigan Health: As an affiliate of University of Michigan Health, Metro Health provides a world-class system of leading-edge healthcare services with its patient-centric, holistic approach. The 208-bed hospital anchors Metro Health Village in Wyoming, Michigan, serving more than 250,000 patients annually. More than 61,000 emergency patients are treated each year at the hospital, a Verified Level II Trauma Center. Primary and specialty care services are provided at 30 locations throughout West Michigan. More than 500 staff physicians provide state-of-the-art treatment for a full array of health needs, including for cancer, heart and vascular disease, stroke and trauma. As a certified Comprehensive Stroke Center and accredited Chest Pain Center, Metro Health provides specialty services that include neurosciences, pulmonology, gastroenterology, cardiology, endocrinology, OB/GYN, bariatrics, orthopedics and wound care. In 2019, Metro Health was the only Grand Rapids area hospital included among the "101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work For" by the National Association of Business Resources. The hospital is committed to promoting health and wellness through the Metro Health Hospital Foundation, Live Healthy community outreach classes and educational programs. For more information visit www.metrohealth.net, follow us on Twitter @MetroHealthGr and like the hospital on Facebook.com/MetroHealth

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SOURCE Metro Health - University of Michigan Health