Dad walked 27 miles through flood debris to make his daughter's wedding — but it was his gift that stole the show

A father walked nearly 30 miles through storm-damaged roads, washed-out bridges, and knee-deep mud just to keep his promise to his daughter that he’d be there to walk her down the aisle. David Jones had planned to make the two-hour drive from his home in Boiling Springs, South Carolina, to Johnson City, Tennessee, in order to be present for his daughter's wedding. But Hurricane Helene had already torn through Florida and Georgia and was pummeling parts of the Carolinas and Tennessee, leaving behind destroyed roads, collapsed bridges, and widespread flooding.

Still, Jones left for the trip, and what would normally have taken two hours stretched into seven. Even after making it to the state line, the road ahead was closed. So Jones decided to park his SUV at the bottom of the exit ramp, grabbed his backpack, shaving kit, and windbreaker, and started walking. "It was pitch black, no streetlights, no nothing. Sections of roads were washed out. There was debris everywhere," he told PEOPLE. Along the way, several troopers tried to turn him around, but he kept repeating the same thing: "My daughter’s getting married at 11 o’clock, and I’m going to be there to walk her down the aisle." A child so close to his heart, there was no way he was going to miss his daughter's wedding.

Near Erwin, Jones got stuck in thick mud while trying to go around heavy debris-clearing equipment. "I thought this could be it," he said, but somehow managed to crawl out. By the time he got out, the roads had started to improve, and word of his journey had already spread. A state trooper told him they were all talking about him, saying he was "determined." He gave him a lift downtown, but there were still miles to go on foot. To stay visible in the dark, Jones grabbed a red road reflector from the side of the road and carried it with him. He was beginning to worry he might not make it to his daughter's wedding, but then he saw a truck pull over, and the driver was his former colleague.

The man drove him the last eight miles. "In all, it was just shy of 27 miles," Jones said. He arrived at the home in Johnson City with no power but running water. He changed into a spare suit and made it to St. Mary’s Church just in time. There was no electricity at the venue, so the ceremony took place by candlelight. At the reception, he handed Elizabeth and her husband, Daniel, the red reflector he’d carried with him. "I told the story of the 27 miles and how, if there was any way, I was going to find it. I said, 'I want you to keep this reflector as a reminder to always protect each other, even in your darkest hours,'" he recalled.

Jones’s 27‑mile trek not only reflected his love for his daughter but also his emotional investment and determination. Research, such as a 2016 study from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), consistently shows that when fathers engage emotionally and remain involved, it leaves a lasting impact on their children’s development. Elizabeth said she only learned the full story after the ceremony, and she hasn’t stopped thinking about it since. "That’s so emotionally moving that my dad loves me that much, that he’ll come and go through all of that to get to my wedding and be there on time," she told WJHL. Jones doesn’t consider himself a hero and said he did what "any dad would do," but Elizabeth doesn’t agree. "He’s my hero. And I’m so thankful he made it," she said.