When a New York couple faced homophobia while planning their wedding, their 90-year-old grandmother settled the bill

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A New York couple got a taste of not-so-friendly Southern hospitality when they turned to a North Carolina vendor to arrange a service for their upcoming wedding. Daniel Sheehan and Matt Price told People magazine how they wanted to arrange transportation to the remote location where their wedding would take place and called a local trolley company. “We just wanted to get our grandparents and guests from point A to point B,” Sheehan told People. “This shouldn’t have been the most complicated part of our planning process.”

Matters became complicated when the streetcar company discovered that it was a same-sex wedding, or, as they asked Sheehan and Price, a wedding between two grooms. When a woman from the company learned that this was the case, she refused to offer them her services. She said that “marriage is sacred” according to her understanding of the Bible, adding, “How can God be God if we don’t allow Him to be God?”

The couple did not respond, but instead posted a Google review of the company to warn other LGBTQ+ people about their experience. Not long after, “the woman emailed them again in a more hostile tone than before, apparently responding to their post. Her follow-up message included a politicized rant about how gay people ‘don’t know when to stop pressuring’ and she blamed the LGBTQ+ community for putting Donald Trump in power by scaring Christians into supporting him,” People wrote.

“When we got the response, I was shocked,” Price tells PEOPLE. “This is coming from a person and a company that operates maybe 10 miles from where I live… and during the planning process, it never occurred to me that this experience we’re having would even be possible today.”

“I was equally in disbelief,” Sheehan adds, noting that the news “brought a lot of emotions to the surface” and made his heart race.

As the story spread through both men’s families, Sheehan worried about how his 90-year-old grandmother, Ginny Parasiliti, would react. “She feared exactly what we would experience if I came out,” Sheehan told People. “I knew it would hurt her if she knew what happened.”

Instead, Parasiliti, a first-generation Italian-American Catholic, spoke out against the discrimination the men faced. “Hi guys, I’m just ANGRY!!!!! But I won’t let these fanatics ruin my joy for your wedding,” Parasiliti’s caption read. “Christianity is about loving each of us and the path we have chosen!!!! Love is who we choose as our partner and the one who makes our lives complete!!!! Hold your heads up and be PROUD of who you are!!! Amazing people!!!!! I love you with all my heart. ♥️”

In a quick follow-up message, she added: “I have a new recipe for you. Tuscan chicken. I’m sending it to you. 👍💕💕💕”

Sheehan spoke about how close he was with his grandmother. “She is a bright spot in my life,” Sheehan told People, explaining that she and his grandfather helped him when his mother was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. “She is so open in her support and became another grandmother to friends of mine, including many who have had less than desirable coming out experiences.”

“She’s an incredible balance of sweet and fiery that I don’t think you always find in someone, but I think she really embodies that,” Price added. “She’s just been amazing to me, to both of us, and has helped strengthen our relationship.”