A young Catholic woman who lost her husband in a tragic accident during their honeymoon has welcomed a “miracle” baby.
Nate Kuhlman, 23, and Mari Kuhlman, 22, tied the knot on October 28, 2023, in a beautiful ceremony in Florida.
But Nate was killed while water skiing on the first day of their honeymoon in St. Lucia in the Caribbean, as she waited for him on the beach. The Tampa Bay Times reported.
The couple had spent only three nights together and chose their wedding date specifically to prevent her from becoming pregnant.
However, despite her period-tracking app Flo telling her she had ovulated days before the wedding, Mari was shocked to discover she was pregnant on Thanksgiving Day.
Nate Kuhlman, 23, and Mari Kuhlman, 22, met at Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, in October 2021.
Nate and Mari met at Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, in October 2021. Nate was studying to become a physician assistant, while Mari planned to become a lawyer or detective.
After a year of picnics at Chick-fil-A, playing pickleball and croquet games, listening to songs from “Godspell” sung by Nate on his ukulele and watching The Mandalorian and Avatar, the couple got engaged.
They agreed not to consummate their relationship until after they were married, at which time they would abstain from birth control in accordance with Catholic tradition, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
The young couple prayed together every morning and went to Mass every night and attended Catholic therapy to make sure they were on the right path.
They held their wedding ceremony at St. Mary Our Lady of Graces Church in St. Petersburg, with 140 Catholic guests, half of them under 30 years old.
According to Father Joe, everyone in attendance “prayed throughout the entire wedding” and the ceremony was “one of the most spiritual he has ever officiated.”
“So many passionate, fervent young people united in their faith,” he told the Tampa Bay Times.
After a year of picnics at Chick-fil-A, pickleball and croquet games, and songs from “Godspell” sung by Nate on his ukulele, the couple got engaged.
Nate was studying to become a medical assistant while Mari was planning to become a lawyer or detective when the couple met.
The newlyweds spent their wedding night at their new Carrollwood apartment and then drove to Miami the following night.
They then embarked on their honeymoon to the Caribbean island of Saint Lucia.
The first morning, Nate, who had been able to swim since he was two and was on the swim team in high school, decided to go water skiing.
But when Mari saw the boat returning to shore, her husband was lying on the deck and receiving CPR.
When paramedics arrived, Nate had been unconscious for half an hour and was eventually pronounced dead three days after they got married.
The young couple prayed together every morning and went to Mass every evening, as well as attending Catholic counseling sessions.
To ensure that they did not get pregnant, the couple decided to get married on October 28.
Nate’s Catholic parents, Heather and Gordon, arrived in St. Lucia to pray over their son’s body in the hospital alongside the now-widowed young man and his parents as two police officers stood outside.
Nate’s Catholic parents, Heather and Gordon, traveled to St. Lucia to pray over their son’s body in the hospital with the now-widowed young man and his parents, as two police officers stood outside.
After 15 minutes of prayer and hope for his return, Nate’s body was taken away for an autopsy.
“I don’t think I could stand to be mad at God. My whole relationship with Nate was based on getting each other to heaven. Now he was there. I was confused. Are you kidding me, Nate? He was always so competitive. Did you really have to get to heaven before me?” Mari said.
The distraught mother later revealed that her priest, Monsignor Joseph Pellegrino, had assured her that “if God wants to bring Nathaniel back to life, he will.”
The funeral was attended by at least 1,000 people, including 15 priests, and was broadcast online.
Weeks later, Mari realized she had missed her period, but attributed it to pain since she hadn’t been eating or sleeping.
Finally, on Thanksgiving Day, she took a test to “get it out of her head,” but instead burst into tears when she discovered she was, in fact, pregnant.
Weeks later, on Thanksgiving, Mari found out she was pregnant after taking a test to “get that thought out of her head.”
Upon hearing the miraculous news, Heather and Gordon were overjoyed and began preparing for the arrival of their grandson.
“This has to be a miracle,” he told his in-laws. “God himself would have had to kick an egg.”
Upon hearing the miraculous news, Heather and Gordon were overjoyed and began preparing for the arrival of their grandson.
Announcing her pregnancy on Instagram, she wrote: “The joys of pregnancy are so hard to articulate, I don’t have much to say except that God truly amazes and takes my breath away with how He intentionally created us, especially women! Being able to participate in the creation of a human being through an act of love is truly a beautiful privilege that I am eternally grateful to the Lord for.”
On July 18, Mari gave birth to Raphael Patrick Kuhlman and posted photos of the baby on Instagram.
On July 18, Mari gave birth to Raphael Patrick Kuhlman and posted photos on Instagram
“Raphael Patrick, my heart is bursting with joy that you’re here. There are no words that can express how much I love you already… Your dad and I always told each other that every day our love for each other GROWS.
“And it’s the same with you now, every minute my heart falls more and more in love with you! Rafael, welcome to this side of the veil, I can’t wait for this life we will have together to begin, as we live our lives striving for heaven to be one with the Father and to be able to unite once again with your father, Nathaniel,” she told the world.
The new mom also revealed that in addition to a framed picture of Jesus over the baby’s crib, she had hung his wedding portrait so he would wake up seeing his father every day.
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