Bindi Irwin and longtime boyfriend Chandler Powell got married at the Australia Zoo last week, despite the fact that almost none of their guests could attend due to the coronavirus pandemic. While they considered postponing the event, Irwin spoke to People about their decision to go through with the (ultimately adjusted) ceremony, which instead featured Irwin, Powell, and just three guests: Bindi’s mom, Terri; her younger brother, Robert; and her late father Steve Irwin's best friend, Wes Mannion.
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"We’ve planned this beautiful day for nearly a year and had to change everything, as we didn’t have guests at our wedding," Irwin wrote in her initial Instagram post about the big day. "This was a very difficult decision but important to keep everyone safe."
To People, she went more in-depth about making the agonizing choice.
"We thought about postponing, because you want to share this day with everyone, but when it boiled down to it, we both just said, ‘Look, we desperately want to get married, and no matter what the future holds, at least we’ll be husband and wife. We can take on the world together,’" she explained to the outlet.
Irwin has been an animal rights advocate ever since her father passed away in September 2006 after an injury from a stingray. She went on to have her own Discovery Kids series Bindi the Jungle Girl, now promoting conservationism (and everlasting love) at the Australian Zoo.
In the end, Powell explained that there were no regrets, because what was important was not the ceremony, but the promise they were making to each other.
“The first time I saw Bindi in that dress was the most beautiful sight in the world,” he told People. “I immediately teared up. Nothing has ever felt more right than that moment in time.”
Added Irwin: "My dad would be so happy.”