LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Weddings are a time for families and friends to come together and celebrate the union of two loved ones— but just a month before one Arkansas woman's wedding, her father passed away.
The union of Dwayne Mosely Jr. and Daria Nelson was made without the physical presence of one very special person.
“I didn't know the weight of this name until after because, you know, he was our dad. So we just saw him his daddy,” Daria explained.
Her father, prominent and well-known musical pastor Darius Nelson, passed away in an untimely death on October 6, just 36 days before his daughter’s wedding that he was planning.
“When he passed, I was determined to keep that day because that was something that he really wanted. He told me, he was gonna do everything,” Daria said.
According to her, all she had to do was show up and everything she could imagine would be made possible.
But while she, her husband-to-be, family, and the community grieved, there was a wedding that still needed to be pulled off.
Daria said that's when her immediate family from her grandmother and mother stepped up to support her mentally, emotionally, and financially.
After Darius' death, they found out that there were over $17,000 dollars in remaining balances that once would have been covered by her father. Daria said that it was with great humility that she, her mother, and her grandmother reached out to others for help.
“So we were accepting donations for the wedding and so many people [donated], my Cash App was ringing daily. When they found out that we were in a place where we needed help, people were willing to do whatever it took because they knew that if my dad was still here, it would go smoothly," She described.
Darius was the sole planner of the wedding and had originally selected his fraternity brother and good friend, Freddie Fields to coordinate the wedding day's day of happenings.
Daria said that Fields went to extreme lengths to help bring forth Darius' vision, even finding the exact blueprints and plans to bring the special day to fruition.
Daria added that Amanda Farmer, CEO of Love Stories by Amanda, managed the bride, bridesmaids, and groomsmen behind the scenes with all their special needs.
"Freddie and Amanda took on these roles solely based on the strength of genuine love and did so free of charge," Daria said.
From family friends, strangers, and even Darius’ only son, Devhan, many stepped up into a position that needed to be filled.
“Walking my sister [down the aisle], that was very important. I just wanted to keep her together," Devhan said.
Step by step together, the siblings took on a moment they could never imagine. Devhan appreciated how his dad always handled business and understood walking his sister down the aisle would make him proud.
“I just... I really looked up to him. I thought he was a superstar for real," Devhan said. “Yeah, no, myth. There’s no mystical thing about it. That's the guy. That's the man. That's the legend now.”
He said they were best friends and he would call his dad for everything down to what socks he should wear.
The two believe it was God’s plan to provide a moment where many in pain could just be happy in the present, insisting that God knew they needed a space and time for them to find a reason to smile.
“There has been so much support from so many people and people who don't have to do anything, they don't have to help. They don't have to be there to say what do you need? Those are the people who are most important to me," Daria said.
Daria's husband even honored his father-in-law in a special way too.
“We changed the lapels to a D to honor Darius and Nelson was on the back. So, it was definitely a Darius Nelson production," Mosely Jr. said.
It was a production that truly came together on the foundation of love and support.
“To say you love my dad is to say you love his children. Because his children, we lived the life with him and we just knew. We had no questions on how much he loved us and the people who really know him know how much he loved us," Daria said.
For the new Mrs. Daria Nelson-Mosely Jr. and her brother Devhan Nelson, the name Darius Nelson will forever live on.
According to Daria, the name Nelson means champion, something she said is no coincidence.
“This is a marathon. We got to keep going even though the heaviness of this and all of the things surrounding it. It was heavy, it was heavy. And I did not think I can make it through it. But knowing that this name means champion, and I'm supposed to finish every race that I face, and know that God is going with me that's one thing that dad instilled in both of us keeping us in the church and in the choir and, you know, just involved we learned about the Lord.”
Daria added that both her mom and my dad made sure that they knew how to go to Jesus in any circumstance and this is no different.
“In this, I feel like I've truly learned who I am because of the blood that I have running through my veins, the greatness that he was, I have it too Devin has it too, like we are going to push forward and we're going to make sure that the name lives on and that we honor his name. Because it's our destiny, we have no choice, but to be great. No, definitely no choice," Daria and Devhan said.
