“We made the decision between us that we’re married for life,” Risher says.
For his 27th birthday on April 30, Louis Risher spent the day beside his fiancée Maddy Baloy, holding her hand and watching her sleep. “I was holding her hand all day, and that’s all I needed,” Risher recalls. Sadly, two days later, Maddy passed away.
Maddy was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic stomach cancer in 2023 and resolved to live her remaining time to the fullest. “I decided to squeeze every ounce of life out of this,” she said back in March.
Part of her journey included sharing her experiences on TikTok, where she made a viral video listing nineteen things she hoped to achieve, such as meeting Gordon Ramsay and climbing Camelback Mountain. With her fiancé’s support, she managed to accomplish many of these goals. “Maddy never let the cancer define her,” Risher says. “She lived exactly how she wanted to live.”
During a dream trip to Japan in March, Maddy aimed to see everything she could, but her health began to worsen. “On the second-to-last day of the trip, she started experiencing severe cramps in her stomach and back,” Risher explains.
Although she managed to fly back to Tampa, Maddy’s condition necessitated an immediate hospital visit, leading to a month-long stay.
By late April, Maddy told her mom, Carissa Talmage, “Mama, I’m tired of being in pain.” The family then chose to bring Maddy home under hospice care.
“She was restless at night, so I’d stay up with her,” Risher said the day before she passed. “We’d talk about all the things we’d done and all the things we still wanted to do—like having dogs and babies. Our family was all there, showering her with love. That’s all we could do.”
On May 2, Risher once again sat by Maddy’s bedside. “Maddy passed away peacefully that morning. She was surrounded by love, and I held her hand the entire time,” he says.
While Maddy ticked off nearly everything on her bucket list, the wedding they planned for the fall remained unfulfilled. Despite this, Risher and Maddy always considered themselves married. “She would ask, ‘I’m your wife, right?’ I’d say, ‘Yes, you’re my wife and I’m your husband,’” Risher shares.
Though their story had an unexpected ending, Risher is thankful for the moments they shared. “She was incredibly strong-willed and adventurous, and she touched so many lives during her cancer journey this past year. It’s been an incredible journey,” he says.
