92-year-old grandma shines as flower girl in granddaughter's wedding
“I was honored. I was really, really honored,” said Georgiana Arlt.
— -- At the age of 92, Georgiana Arlt shined in the spotlight as the flower girl in her granddaughter’s wedding.
"I was honored. I was really, really honored," Arlt told ABC News about the moment her granddaughter, Abby Mershon, asked her to take center stage at her wedding. "I was in shock. I gladly did it and I’m happy I did it and I’m happy I lived long enough to do it."
For the bride, it was a no-brainer to highlight her grandparents on her big day. She also wanted her grandfather to serve a special role, but he passed away almost exactly a year before her July 1 wedding.
"I always knew that my grandma would be involved, and I really wanted my grandpa to be my ring bearer as well, but he just passed away a year ago," Mershon, of Mankato, Minnesota, said. "My husband and I asked her together to be our flower girl in front of our entire family. My grandma shrieked at the top of her lungs. It was so sweet. She kept screaming, 'I’ve never been in a wedding besides my own.'"
Arlt donned a sparkly silver dress as she strutted down the aisle tossing her flowers to a karaoke piano version of Ed Sheeran’s "Galway Girl." She said she enjoyed the job, but it also tuckered her out.
"I was happy and joyful. You can see that when I threw the flowers," the flower girl recalled. "I wanted to entertain everybody walking down that aisle. I must’ve because they were all laughing at me. Then they had me out dancing and I slept all night when I got home in bed. I was worn out."
Mershon, 27, could tell the exact moment her grandmother made her grand entrance because her family erupted in cheers and laughter.
"I was in hiding and I heard people shouting and clapping so I had to peek through the window," the bride recalled. "My attendant was there for me and she said, 'Abby you need to hide,' but I said, 'I can’t miss this moment.' People were cheering. It was amazing. That’s exactly what I wanted. I wouldn’t have wanted anything less than make my grandma feel special."
The only thing missing?
"She told me she thought about bringing candy to throw out like she was parade," Mershon said about her fun-loving grandma.