Lesbian couple who planned to wed in 24 countries announce that one of them is dying
A lesbian couple who hit the headlines last year after they set themselves the challenge to get married in 24 countries has tragically announced that one of them is dying.
Fleur Pierets, 44, and Julian P. Boom, 39, announced Project 22 in August last year.
The project sees the couple travelling across the globe to marry in all of the countries which have legalised same-sex marriage.
Originally it was 22 countries but part way through the project two more countries, Germany and Malta, were added to the list.
So far, the couple have tied the knot in four countries: France, Belgium, America and the Netherlands.
Related: This couple are going to get married in every country where it’s legal
However, their beautiful journey has been cut short as Julian has been diagnosed with tumours around her brain and heart.
She has been given just three months to live by doctors who expect she will slip into a coma after that.
(Facebook)
Julian’s wife, Fleur, announced the sad news on Facebook.
In the post, she explained that they first realised something was wrong as Julian could not eat food and had fainted a number of times.
It is believed that the tumours have been growing for ten years but were never picked up despite Julian’s fight with breast cancer in 2016.
Fleur explained: “After running some scans, it turns out that she has numerous tumors in her head and around her heart.
“The doctors are giving her 3 more months in which she will lose her capacity to speak and to remember things, until she will slip into a coma.”
She added that she had been thankful for being able to spend the last 18 months with her wife.
“I always believed in having a purpose in life, in being exactly at the right place and time to make you grow. Now I find there’s only randomness. And a great lack of silver linings,” she finished.
Since revealing the sad news three weeks ago, Fleur has posted more updates.
Just a day after the original news she explained that her wife had quickly been taken ill as she could no longer read.
She also took the moment to thank friends and family for the support offers to them.
She wrote: “Thank you so very much for all your loving vibes, beautiful words and for those numerous emails.
“I won’t be replying to them soon, since I want to spend as much time with her as possible, but know that they are giving us a lot of strength.
“Julian isn’t able to read anymore but I’m reading all your letters out loud, in those few moments when she’s awake.
(Facebook)
“We are taking your blessings with us. Thank you for being there,” she added.
A GoFundMe has been started for the couple as their insurance policy is only covering parts of the healthcare costs.
The fundraising page was started by a friend of the couple, Robert Simeon Greene.
He wrote: “Fleur and Julian touched our hearts. They inspired us, and helped us to realize that no dream is too crazy to follow.
“A cancer diagnosis is dreadful. It affects every aspect of your life, brings dreams to a halt, and in a case like this, can take away hope for the future.
“From my personal experience, I know that when dealing with cancer you are confronted with an extreme amount of expenses, which are not covered by any health insurance.
“I want to ease any stress Fleur and Julian may have during these difficult times. This is the only way I know how.”
The couple set about on Project 22 to promote marriage equality internationally.
Fleur previously explained: “We have tried to make it very inclusive. We talked about how we can raise awareness on this subject matter and make it very positive.
“So instead of complaining about 170 countries where you cannot get married, let’s celebrate 24.”
The couple said they are “kind of making a time capsule in which you can see that things can actually change for the better.
“It would be great in two years, to have an exhibition called 22 and have 26 or 27 countries that would be amazing.”
The couple’s New York marriage will be the legally binding one.
And because the others will not be legally binding ceremonies in other countries, officials have reached out to offer support.
“We really, really wanted to do this project,” continued Fleur. “So we sold everything, not that we had so much. So now we are travelling with just one suitcase.”
It was expected that the project would take two years to complete, however due to Julian’s diagnoses it is unlikely they will be able to carry out their dream.
