Sabrina Parker, a 16-year-old from Jacksonville, North Carolina, was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease just after falling in love with boyfriend Matt Scozzari. Matt helped her celebrate her last days with a beautiful friendship ceremony.
16 is the age to focus on proms, college applications, and learning to drive. It shouldn’t be about creating a living will or counting out your final days.
But fate took a tragic turn for Sabrina Parker, a 16-year-old girl from Jacksonville, North Carolina. Both her maternal grandmother and her mother had died young from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig’s Disease), a degenerative condition that is hereditary in 10 percent of cases.
After Sabrina’s mother died, she was raised by her father’s parents, who watched her closely for signs of the disease. She seemed perfectly normal all through childhood, and her grandparents thought she’d escaped her genetic curse. But last year, she began having earaches, and in gym class, she wasn’t able to lift her head off the mat without using her hands. Her grandparents knew something was wrong—and after several doctors’ tests, their worst fears were confirmed. Sabrina had ALS, and would likely have less than a year to live.
Such a tragic diagnosis would be difficult for anyone to take, let alone a teenage girl who should have her whole life ahead of her—but the love and support of her boyfriend, Matt Scozzari, helped her cope with the awful news. The young couple had been dating for just a few months when she told him what she was going through. He promised to stand by her, no matter what happened.
As Sabrina’s condition deteriorated, Matt thought about what he could do to show how much he loved her. He considered proposing to her. But his mother offered an alternative: a friendship ceremony, in which the couple would stand before a minister and pledge a lifelong commitment to one another.
The ceremony was held on November 20th, and although Sabrina was battling pneumonia, she was radiant and full of joy. Sabrina was no longer able to speak, but when Matt told her, “Being around you just makes me smile ... I’m hoping that you think the same way,” she nodded her head and grinned at him. They exchanged a pair of matching Irish Claddagh rings.
Nine days later, Sabrina’s condition began rapidly deteriorating. Her grandparents called Matt, who stayed at her bedside through the night, holding her hand and comforting her. When she passed away the next morning, Matt kissed her forehead and whispered in her ear: “Thank you for saving me.”