Steve Irwin’s Daughter Gets Married With No Guests Due To Coronavirus

The disruption the coronavirus is causing is not lost on people. Families are not able to be in the labor room to welcome a new family member; events are being canceled, both large and small. This is true for people who were planning weddings; since gatherings are discouraged, couples must pivot their plans and kind of make the best of it. And that’s what Bindi Irwin, daughter of the late Steve Irwin, did.

Bindi Irwin had to scrap her previous plans for her wedding and make the best of the situation. 21-year-old Bindi married her longtime boyfriend Chandler Powel, 23, at the Australia Zoo, where they both live and work, on Wednesday, March 25th. And their ceremony was a little different than they had planned due to the coronavirus.

“We’ve planned this beautiful day for nearly a year,” Bindi said after getting engaged last July, “and had to change everything, as we didn’t have guests at our wedding,” she wrote on Instagram. “This was a very difficult decision but important to keep everyone safe. We wish all of our friends and family could have been there with us.”

Thankfully, Bindi was able to have her mom, Terri, and her brother Robert, at the ceremony since they’re also living at the zoo with the now-married couple. “Mum helped me get ready, Robert walked me down the aisle, Chandler became my husband, and together we lit a candle in Dad’s memory,” Bindi shared about her dad, who died in 2006. “We shared tears and smiles and love. Thankfully, since we all live at Australia Zoo as a family, we could be there for each other.”

While it may not have been the picture-perfect ceremony they had envisioned when planning started in July, they made the right decision. “Right now, we’re encouraging the world to hold onto hope and love, which will carry us forward during this profound time in history. To everyone reading this — stay safe, social distance and remember LOVE WINS!”

And the picture is pretty perfect.