The woman with the golden arm: This Bionic Bride overcame her fears and found true love
Being different from the crowd is hard and Rebekah Marine, 31, knows this better than most. The young model got married to 32-year-old medical student Jared Paster on April 7 this year, sporting a brand new gold prosthetic on her arm, made especially for the occasion. Marine was born without her right forearm due to a condition called symbrachydactyly. The motivational speaker and model had been using a black i-limb quantum prosthetic for the last 19 years, but decided that her big day called for something special.
“I knew when I got engaged that I wanted a wedding arm — I wanted to do something special,” said the blushing “bionic” bride. “The whole point of wearing it was to draw attention to it. I wanted people to see it and notice it because I am proud of where I am right now.”
Marine told Yahoo Lifestyle that she grew up without being bullied or mistreated for her condition, but once she got older people started asking questions and feeding her insecurities. The model is a native of Woodbury, New Jersey and has been involved in campaigns for Tommy Hilfiger and Nordstrom. She got her big break when she was asked to model for New York Fashion Week 2015.
“Growing up I feared marriage because I feared everyone looking at me, so it’s awesome to see how far I’ve come,” Marine said.
(Photo by Fernanda Calfat/Getty Images for Runway of Dreams)
“Originally I had liked the idea of white, but I realized you might lose it with the white of my wedding dress. A friend suggested gold. The challenge then was finding the right shade of gold because I didn’t want to look like C-3PO.”
In fact, Marine loved the new arm so much she took it with her on her honeymoon to Mexico.
“I would wear sunglasses and I could see everybody staring at me because they didn’t know I was looking at them,” Marine says about her trip. “It was cool to see people staring at it in awe.”
The young model is determined to bring the message of body positivity to others and help people feel empowered.
“The gold arm makes me more approachable. It draws a lot more attention and the whole point of wearing it is to draw attention to it. I want people to ask questions and I want to educate people about it.”