Finally set to be mom! Paralyzed bride's college friend offers to be her surrogate for free to avoid $120,000 fees

Rachelle Friedman Chapman, who became known as 'The Paralyzed Bride' in 2010 after a tragic accident at her own bachelorette party left her unable to walk, has revealed that she is set to become a mother after a friend offered to be her surrogate for free.

The 28-year-old and her husband Chris, from North Carolina, launched a crowdfunding campaign last month in a bid to raise money for the procedure, which can cost up to $120,000, but now their financial worries have been put to bed.

Mrs Chapman told the Today show this weekend that she's hoping her surrogate - mentioned only as a 'college friend' - will be pregnant in August. And although she admitted she wants a girl, her husband said he would like a 'fishing buddy.'



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Over joyed: Rachelle Friedman Chapman, who became known as 'The Paralyzed Bride' after a tragic accident at her own bachelorette party left her unable to walk, has revealed that she is set to become a mother after a friend offered to be her surrogate for free

'Girls fish too!' she joked. The blonde said she's always wanted to be a mother and as soon as her accident happened it was the first question in her mind.

'I looked at the EMT and asked "will I be able to have kids?" and they said "yes",' she recalled.

The Raleigh, North Carolina native explained that while she is still biologically able to have children in her condition, her medications would be harmful to a fetus.

In a bid to start a family the Chapmans opted for surrogacy and appealed for $60,000 via GoFundMe.com.

Maternal instinct: The blonde- pictured here with her husband Chris - said she's always wanted to be a mother and as soon as her accident happened it was the first question in her mind

But their prayers were unexpectedly answered just weeks after setting up their page.



Mr Chapman said: 'We had a college friend of ours who stepped forward and wanted to help out.

'She said she'd already been looking into surrogacy and wanted to help us start a family.'

'A lot of people don't think someone in a wheelchair can be a mother, that I'm not physically able to take care of a kid but people underestimate my abilities '

His overjoyed wife added: 'It's amazing, it wouldn't be possible without her. Surrogacy is astronomically expensive, it's crazy.'

Touching on the discrimination she faced after announcing she wanted children, she added: ' A lot of people . . . don't think someone in a wheelchair can be a mother, that I'm not physically able to take care of a kid but people underestimate my abilities.

'I think we'll be able to do it. I think we'll be really awesome parents.'

Even with their surrogate stepping in for free, the Chapmans say lawyer fees and other expenses will 'add up.'



Their fundraising page remains active and to date they have achieved $2,695 in donations.

Desperate times: While the North Carolina native (left, before the accident and right, on her wedding day) is biologically able to have children, her medications would be harmful to a fetus

Hopes and dreams: 'I want a child more than anything,' she tweeted last month

Mrs Chapman is also coming out with a book, The Promise: A Tragic Accident, a Paralyzed Bride, and the Power of Love, Loyalty, and Friendship, this month, which will delve into her life before and after she became paralyzed.

The accident occurred in 2010, just weeks before her wedding, when the bride-to-be was at her own bachelorette party with her four bridesmaids.

When the girls decided to take a dip in the hotel pool one night, one of them pushed her in and she fell too close to the shallow end.

'I broke my neck upon impact, became paralyzed from the chest down and would never walk again,' she told xoJane.com. It took two-and-a-half months of intensive physical therapy for Mrs Chapman to rebuild her upper body strength and regain movement in her arms and fingers.



Instead of resenting her friend, however, Mrs Chapman chose to keep her name secret from the press, in order to prevent them from hounding her and making her feel guiltier than she already did.

New chapter: Friedman's book tells the story of her life, injury and recovery

'She is and will always be one of the my closest friends,' she stated, explaining that her decision to keep her friend's identity a secret is something she never once questioned.

'It's not our sisterly bond that keeps me from saying her name in interviews,' she wrote. 'It's the fact that she's a human being.'

She also revealed that the friend who pushed her into the pool has been instrumental in her journey towards motherhood.



'I feel very grateful to have her support and love,' she wrote.

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