AN ex-marine from Bolton who was paralysed in a holiday accident nearly 10 years ago is tying the knot today - to the district nurse who helped him back to health and Falklands veteran Steve Greenhalgh will even be able to slip a wedding ring on bride Edna McNeely's finger, thanks to bionic surgery which gave him back the use of his hands.

Steve, 36, who served with a commando squadron and was also in Northern Ireland before leaving the Marines in 1985 to set up a haulage business, thought he had lost everything when he broke his neck in the accident in 1990.

He was holiday on the Greek island of Kefalonia when he dived from a cliff and broke his neck as he hit a sandbank. After being airlifted back to Britain he spent over a year in a specialist spinal injury hospital and many months coming to terms with spending the rest of his life paralysed.

Fortune

But the tragic accident did bring Steve some fortune - it introduced him to Edna who he will exchange vows with today.

Community nurse Edna, 43, visited Steve at home during the years of physiotherapy and her admiration for Steve's ability to cope with what had happened to him quickly turned to affection. The pair, who now live on Wilson Fold Avenue, Lostock, fell in love and haven't looked back since.

"The wedding has always been on the cards", said bride-to-be Edna. "We've just never put it into operation before, so earlier this year we decided the time was right to make a rock-solid commitment after living together for two years."

Edna, who has two children from a previous marriage, met Steve in 1992 when he was one of her patients. "He is paralysed from the neck down", she added, "but it hasn't stopped him. He is a very determined person and it is definitely his character that has seen him through some very tough times and that is what made me admire him."

Thanks to surgeons who implanted microchips in his chest, Steve will be able to place a golden band on his bride's finger during the service at Mere Hall register office.

The bionic treatment, carried out at Southport and Formby General Hospital, also means he can now operate his automatic wheelchair and can drive a specially adapted car as he has full arm and hand control.

Although tetraplegic Steve is still not fully independent, the neuro hand control surgery has also allowed him to start his first job since the accident, training as a British Gas computer operator in Manchester.

At home yesterday Steve was looking forward to the big day, he said: "I woke up one morning and suddenly realised my fondness for Edna turned to love."

After the wedding they will be celebrating with a reception at The New Pack Horse Hotel, but they are saving their honeymoon until March when the family go to Tenerife.

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