Fulton County man facing incurable disease marries the love of his life on short notice
Fulton County man facing incurable disease marries the love of his life on short notice
September 14, 2021
by Tom Jones, WSB-TV
A pair of newlyweds are thankful for the quick action by a Fulton County judge because they may not have much time left together.
Mark Zirpoli is facing an incurable form of cancer and has no way of knowing how long he has left, but still wanted to marry the love of his life. Doing so the normal way, however, was a risk to his health.
Zirpoli could not go inside the Fulton County courthouse to fill out the marriage license documents because of the potential health risks, so Probate Judge Kenya Johnson and her staff came outside to perform the ceremony on the courthouse steps.
“I now present to you all the new married couple. Let’s give them a round of applause,” Judge Johnson announced during the ceremony.
Getting married was a race against time for Zirpoli and his now husband, Jose Fonseca. Zirpoli is scheduled for a stem cell treatment that will completely wipe him out later this week.
“Once I have the stem cell transplant I can’t be out in public. I’ll be quarantined for like 100 days,” Zirpoli told Channel 2′s Tom Jones.
Because he won’t be able to leave the house for so long, the couple wanted to get married before the procedure.
So Fonseca emailed Judge Johnson to ask for her help. He was shocked when he received a quick response from the judge.
“She said, ‘Come in tomorrow,’ and it was fantastic she was able to do that for us,” Fonseca said.
Judge Johnson told Channel 2 Action News that she was thrilled to be able to help out the couple.
“It’s what government is supposed to do. And probate court stands available to help those citizens that need us most,” she said.
No matter how long the couple has left, they say marrying the love of their lives can’t be measured in time.
A pair of newlyweds are thankful for the quick action by a Fulton County judge because they may not have much time left together.
Mark Zirpoli is facing an incurable form of cancer and has no way of knowing how long he has left, but still wanted to marry the love of his life. Doing so the normal way, however, was a risk to his health.
Zirpoli could not go inside the Fulton County courthouse to fill out the marriage license documents because of the potential health risks, so Probate Judge Kenya Johnson and her staff came outside to perform the ceremony on the courthouse steps.
“I now present to you all the new married couple. Let’s give them a round of applause,” Judge Johnson announced during the ceremony.
Getting married was a race against time for Zirpoli and his now husband, Jose Fonseca. Zirpoli is scheduled for a stem cell treatment that will completely wipe him out later this week.
“Once I have the stem cell transplant I can’t be out in public. I’ll be quarantined for like 100 days,” Zirpoli told Channel 2′s Tom Jones.
Because he won’t be able to leave the house for so long, the couple wanted to get married before the procedure.
So Fonseca emailed Judge Johnson to ask for her help. He was shocked when he received a quick response from the judge.
“She said, ‘Come in tomorrow,’ and it was fantastic she was able to do that for us,” Fonseca said.
Judge Johnson told Channel 2 Action News that she was thrilled to be able to help out the couple.
“It’s what government is supposed to do. And probate court stands available to help those citizens that need us most,” she said.
No matter how long the couple has left, they say marrying the love of their lives can’t be measured in time.