PALM BAY, Fla. – On Monday, a Palm Bay man with terminal cancer married the woman he said got away decades ago.
Ken Boyer, 60, was diagnosed with cancer last year. Boyer moved to Palm Bay from Missouri a few years ago and quickly made friends who were involved in tournament softball.
Boyer said in February, he got a message from Michelle Kimbrel on Facebook. Kimbrel said Boyer's profile showed up as a friend suggestion. She also said the two met nearly 23 years ago in Missouri, where Boyer owned a sports bar.
As the weeks went by, Boyer told Kimbrel about his terminal cancer.
"It's tough for me to have to accept this, but I have," Boyer said. "I'm ready. I've had a really good life. God has been good to me and if this is my time, then it's my time."
Kimbrel said she asked Boyer who was taking care of him, to which he replied he was taking care of himself.
"I said, 'No, you are not. I'll take a leave of absence from work. I'll talk to them and see what I can do. I will take care of you,'" Kimbrel said.
Kimbrel arrived in Florida from Missouri on April 19. Boyer said he proposed to her within an hour of picking her up from the airport. They said they both knew they had feelings for each other decades ago and never told each other.
"God could not give me a better present if this is my last hurrah," Boyer said. "I could not have asked for anything better."
Determined to fight and to never give up on love, Boyer said he couldn't have written a more perfect final chapter.
"I fought this a lot because I love each and every one of these people that are here," Boyer said at his wedding.
Boyer's friends originally planned for the wedding to take place on a baseball diamond, but because of the rain it was moved indoors.
Boyer and Kimbrel plan to move back to Missouri, where Boyer plans to seek alternative treatment.