A Vision-Impaired Bride Used Eye Masks to Create an Unforgettable Moment at Her Georgia Wedding

In 2017, Hearn suddenly lost her vision due to a rare disease that damaged her optic nerves, and when she and her now-husband, Zach Stich, began planning their wedding at the Lindale Mill outside of Rome, they knew it was the perfect opportunity to let their loved ones in on Hearn’s point of view. “My husband is a musician and because of that, he is such a great storyteller,” Hearn says. “Any time we go to a wedding, he is leaning over to me and saying things like: They’re coming down the aisle now; the bridesmaids are wearing plum dresses. I probably got the idea from there if I really think back on it. Zach wants me to have equal access to everything and be able to experience it just like everyone else.”

Hearn, who works as the gameday staffing and administration manager for the Atlanta Braves, recruited her colleague and friend, Paul Byrd, a former MLB pitcher and current TV broadcaster for the Braves, to shepherd the moment. “I knew he would get what I was going for,” she says. Byrd stood at the altar and asked the guests to put on the blindfolds that waited for them in the pews. As the groom, family, and wedding party processed down the aisle, he began describing the scene:

“Zach’s grandmother, Memaw, is now making her entrance—she looks fantastic. Memaw is being escorted by Zach’s brothers, Mark and Jonathan. Memaw is wearing a tea-length maroon dress. Jonathan is in a navy suit, and Mark is in a navy sportscoat with gray slacks.” “The matron of honor—Katie’s sister, Ginny—is now entering the ceremony along with Katie’s niece, Mary Daniel.” “Zach’s crying again,” he repeated more than once.

Once the wedding party was situated, an audio clip that University of Georgia football coach Kirby Smart had specially recorded for the occasion played over the speakers: “Ladies and gentlemen, please rise and remove your blindfolds”—a nod to the battle cry played on Sanford Stadium’s jumbotron before home games and a testament to the connections Hearn, a huge Bulldog fan, has made through her career in the sports world. The guests stood, removed their masks, and watched as Hearn and her father walked down the aisle. As wedding photographer Abigail Thomas remembers, “There was not a dry eye in the house.”

Throughout the evening Hearn incorporated other, more subtle details to make the wedding more accessible. Rather than a guestbook, for instance, she and Stich opted for a phone on which guests could leave heartfelt voicemails. For her dress, Hearn chose an Anne Barge gown and customized the skirt with a floral jacquard. “I really wanted a gown with texture for the sensory element of touch,” she says. Jack, Hearn’s nine-year-old yellow Lab guide dog, was a steadfast companion throughout the party, and cocktail napkins at the bar sported his picture with the words, “I do, too.”

“We got married in December, so a lot of people expected us to use green and red,” Hearn says. “But red is a color I can’t see at all, so we used white and blue because those are shades I can see the color contrast between. Those are the colors that stand out to me.” 

Hearn didn’t realize how impactful these details would be, but in the months since the wedding, she’s heard from various friends and family members who’ve kept their mask as a reminder of that special day. “I was at a baby shower the other day, and a distant cousin of mine came up to me and said that she’s looked at the mask a couple of times and thought about how I live life differently but am the same person. She said it really opened her mind to the limitations I face,” Hearn says. “We wanted everyone to be present with us, and I really think it brought everyone together.”