Marissa Nielsen, 29, married her husband, Alex Nielsen, on June 28, 2025. Their love celebration took place at the stunning Mountain Top Resort in Vermont. The wedding’s gone viral online, charming hundreds of thousands—potentially millions—with it. A heartbreaking exchange between Marissa and her father, Leland Police Department Chief Greg Wickles, caught the world’s attention on TikTok, racking up more than 755,000 views.
When the celebratory father-daughter dance began, Marissa soon revealed a surprise that had her father lost for words. She challenged her three big sisters— Sarah, Kelley and Natalie —to follow them out onto the gym floor. Marissa’s niece and nephew came along too and added to the warmly infectious spirit. They took to calling Greg Wickles “Pa,” a fitting and cute down-home form of “Grandpa.” This completely unforeseen twist not only made this moment so much more emotional, it turned it into a beautiful celebration of family.
Marissa didn’t simply want to pay tribute to her father’s legacy. She wanted to leave a potential legacy to everybody who attended. “Having all of us there with her in one place—that was everything,” she said. The event tugged at the heartstrings of attendees, many of whom “shed grateful tears,” when they watched the celebratory dance unfold.
The planning leading up to this special moment was anything but planned. And of course, we didn’t rehearse it or do any of that kind of stuff, and my dad was just completely shocked,” Marissa said. As unexpected as this honor was, the real surprise was clear on Greg’s face as he absorbed the moment with his daughters and grandchildren on stage. Marissa said that her father, not known to show a lot of emotion himself, was actually fighting back tears while watching them perform.
She recalled his reaction: “I remember him just saying, kind of in a raspy voice, how much he was surprised and appreciated that and just loved us all so much.” As the youngest of his four daughters, Marissa made a final twist of fate into something new. This wonderful occasion was a testimony to their strong family unity.
Through this work Marissa wishes that anyone who watches the TikTok video will feel motivated to cherish their loved ones. Appreciate your loved ones, keep your family close, Equity and justice must guide all federal decision-making, she urged. Celebrate each step of the journey. Just because you never know when you’re looking back on memories like that, when would be the last.
