A teen who had been battling a rare form of cancer has died less than a month after marrying his high school sweetheart.
Dustin Snyder, 19, died on Friday in Valrico, Florida, just three weeks after marrying his 21-year-old girlfriend Sierra Siverio in a bittersweet ceremony that touched the heart of the nation.
Snyder’s sister Brittany Hails confirmed his passing, writing on Instagram: ‘My baby brother got his wings today. I love you Dustin Wade Snyder. No more suffering god got you now.’
Siverio told the Tampa Bay Times that she had last been able to have a conversation with Snyder on Wednesday, when she asked him to blink if he understood her.
Dustin Snyder, 19, wed his girlfriend Sierra Siverio in Plant City, Florida on Sunday after his community rallied together to help organize their wedding in less than a week
The groom called the exciting day ‘the best most special day’ of his life ‘for sure’
‘I said I love him,’ she said, ‘and if he’s ready to let go he needs to go. I’m here and it’d be okay.’
He blinked, she said.
Snyder made national news last month when he married Siverio in Plant City, near Tampa.
The bittersweet ceremony took place at The Big Red Barn just four days after the pair got engaged.
The teen, who had been battling cancer on and off for roughly a year, was given the heartbreaking news that there was nothing more doctors could do for him.
‘Appreciate the time you have… you don’t know how much time you have,’ the bride told ABC News at the time of the ceremony.
The groom also said he feels ‘amazing’ and the dream wedding was ‘the best most special day’ of his life ‘for sure.’
The newlyweds celebrated further with a honeymoon at Disney World followed by a getaway to Colorado.
For their honeymoon, they will celebrate further with a honeymoon at Disney World
A slew of family and friends gathered for the emotional ceremony where tears flowed
The young couple, who had been dating for just over two years, decided last month that they wanted to get married sooner rather than later.
‘I’ll be forever grateful for this, it is going to be a blessing. I’m extremely excited,’ Sierra told DailyMail.com of their nuptials.
Despite the circumstances, Sierra remained optimistic about the time they have left and plans to make the most of being husband and wife.
Sierra said the pair first met back in the sixth grade when they attended the same middle school.
They reconnected several years later when she walked into their local Steak ‘n Shake to apply for a job and Dustin happened to be working there.
They’d been together ever since and Sierra had been by Dustin’s side right throughout his battle with cancer.
Dustin was diagnosed with cancer on his 18th birthday. He has been battling the disease on and off for a year. He is pictured above early on in his diagnosis
Dustin, pictured left before his diagnosis and right earlier this month, has had multiple surgeries and chemotherapy treatments over the past year
The pair first met in middle school but reconnected when they both started working at their local Steak ‘n Shake in Florida two years ago
Dustin was diagnosed on his 18th birthday when he started suffering from chest pains and was taken to the hospital.
‘The doctors said there was a mass on his lungs. They did a biopsy and figured out it was cancer,’ Sierra said.
‘They did chemo and it was working, but it was around the lung too much. They ended up removing his lung.’
He had surgery again in August to remove more tumors after the cancer returned to his stomach and chest area.
‘He was cancer free in November. But then he started not feeling well. He went back to the doctor and they found it all over his stomach and pelvis,’ Sierra said.
‘There’s too much so there’s no treatment.’
The young couple, pictured above at their prom, decided last Monday that they wanted to get married sooner rather than later
Following the tragic news, the couple enlisted the help of their families to make Dustin’s final wish of marrying his soulmate a reality
The teen, who has been battling cancer on and off for roughly a year, was given the heartbreaking news just weeks ago that there was nothing more doctors could do for him