A groom gave his beloved stepdad a beautiful surprise on the altar when it was revealed he’d secretly changed his surname to his so he and his wife would be taking it in marriage.
For Mike Holbrook, 26, from near Lexington, Kentucky, stepdad John Reece has been the only father figure he’s ever known, as John came into his life when he was very young.
Despite building a father-son bond over the years, Mike never got the opportunity to change his last name, so he thought his wedding day would be the perfect time to announce the gesture.
Ahead of the ceremony, Mike legally changed his last name to Reece, while he and his now-wife, Nikki, 31, also had to hide decorations that stated their new surname.
Then, on October 12, at Boone’s Trace National Golf Club in Richmond, the couple stood on the altar as the officiant said, “Instead of presenting to you this day, Mr. And Mrs. Holbrook, I now present to you, for the very first time, Mr. and Mrs. Reece.”
The gesture not only took John by surprise but large numbers of friends and family were also brought to tears by the gesture.
After the ceremony, Mike headed towards a tearful John, whom he hugged emotionally before showing him his driver’s license, which already featured his second name as Reece.
The couple had coordinated the surprise with their wedding videographer, Courtney Andrew, of Bliss Creative, who later shared a clip of the surprise on social media.
Speaking of the surprise, Nikki said: “Mike and John never got the chance to change the name, so we changed it before the wedding.
“We hid the change until the wedding day – we even had to hide decorations with the last name on it.
“It was a complete surprise for everyone, including John.
“It was just really emotional for everyone, and we were happy to have Mike finally match the rest of his family.
“Everyone who has seen the video has said they cried and told me how sentimental it is.”