Love After a 911 Call: She Married Her First Responder!
The first time firefighter and EMT Cameron Hill saw Melissa Dohme, he was transporting her badly battered body to a waiting helicopter. On Jan. 24, 2012, Dohme had been stabbed 32 times by her ex-boyfriend, with 19 cuts to her head, neck and face alone. "There was blood everywhere," says Hill, 42, a firefighter/EMT with the Clearwater (Fla.) Fire Department. "We all couldn't believe how strong she was. That was the first thing I fell in love with." Dohme, who flatlined four times that night, says, "I wouldn't be here without him. It's a miracle."
But the real divine intervention happened 10 months later, when Dohme was honored at a luncheon to raise awareness of domestic violence. She and Hill met for the first time since the stabbing and had an instant connection. "I remember being so giddy and just laughing," says Dohme, 25. "I was like, 'This is crazy-I really like this guy!'" Within two months they'd become inseparable, and on March 4 they were married at the Lange Farm in Dade City, Fla., in front of 200 guests, including six of the first responders from that fateful night. "It was a full-circle moment," says Dohme. "I spent the worst and the best day of my life with Cameron."
In between, Dohme-with Hill's help-has overcome her share of challenges, including 10 surgeries (she still has some facial paralysis). "Cameron was always there for me, loving me through it one step at a time," says Dohme, now an advocate for domestic-violence prevention at Hands Across the Bay (handsacrossthebay.org). "I was afraid to open up my heart, but fate brought us here. Life and love after abuse is possible."
