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‘I rescued an orphan – and married his brother'

Ashley dasianu’s first sight of nine-year-old Marius in a Romanian hospital broke her heart. He was lying in bed with tears rolling down his horrifically burned and swollen cheeks.

The little boy had no regular visitors – tragically both his parents had perished in the house fire that had left him with
burns covering 75 per cent of his body.

“I nearly fainted, because his skin looked so raw,” remembers Ashley, now 23. “He had just holes where his nose had been and no eyelids. It was heartbreaking to see a young child in such pain. His eyes seemed to  be pleading with me to help him.”

Ashley was so moved by the youngster’s plight that she spent the next four months visiting him every day, and fighting to raise money to take him home to the US with her, so she and her parents could look after him.

Now, three years on from that first meeting, he’s made a remarkable recovery and – in an amazing twist – Ashley’s married his older brother, Ionut, 21,  and has just given birth to their son.

Speaking from her home in San Diego, US, Ashley says: “The minute I met Marius, I wanted to help him. His burns horrified me. I never dreamed I’d end up falling for his brother, but he’s the love of my life.”

Ashley went to Iasi, Romania, with her friend Jessica Free, 23, to volunteer in an orphanage in January 2008, as part of an internship programme for university students.

Ashley explains: “We helped in the orphanage in the morning and played with the children in St Maria’s Children’s Hospital in the afternoon.”

It was there she met Marius, just before his ninth birthday. She was told how he’d been terribly burned when a boiler in his home exploded in November 2007, killing his parents. He escaped through a bedroom window, but suffered severe burns over most of his face and body and was in a coma for two weeks.

Doctors had to amputate all Marius’ fingers because of the severity of the burns and he lost his eyelids and nose. He lay alone in the hospital, except for occasional visits from his older brother, Ionut, who was studying in Italy.

Ashley says: “It’s sad seeing any child ill and in pain. But Marius haunted me – I couldn’t stand that he had no visitors, no one to bring him treats or extra food, or to hold his hand and comfort him.

“Jessica and I decided to throw a little party  for his ninth birthday. We brought some balloons and asked the nurses to teach us how to sing Happy Birthday in Romanian, as he didn’t understand English.He had a trachea tube in, making it hard to speak, but I could see he loved it.”

Marius showed Ashley a photograph of himself, taken before the fire. “I could see the light in his eyes – he seemed as if he didn’t have a care in the world. That picture made us want to do all we could to give him a normal life,” says Ashley, who communicated with him via a translator.

After the party, Ashley and Jessica visited him every day while he underwent numerous painful skin-graft operations.
Ashley explains: “The Romanian hospital didn’t have the money for major reconstructive surgery and I couldn’t stop thinking about what would happen to him when we left. He’d have no one to look out for him. I longed to take him back to America, so I could keep on helping him.”

So Ashley pleaded with her parents Lynn, 41, and teacher Paul, 42, for their help and, together, they contacted hospitals all over America, asking them to carry out the surgery. They even created a website, telling Marius’ story to encourage people to help.

Seven months later, Shriners Hospital for Children in Los Angeles agreed to fund Marius’ medical care until he’s 18.

“It was amazing news, I couldn’t wait to tell Marius,” recalls Ashley, who was back in the US by then. “He was scared about flying, but happy otherwise.”

Jessica contacted Marius’ brother, Ionut, to accompany him, so he had family with him. Ashley says: “I’d met Ionut in passing at the hospital, but we’d never got close because of the language barrier. I was relieved he agreed to come with Marius.”

In August 2008, the brothers flew into America. “It was amazing meeting Marius at the airport,” says Ashley. “It was such a relief to see him again – I’d been home for three months by this point and, even though we’d emailed, I missed him terribly. I gave him the biggest hug and was in floods of tears – I knew we could do so much to help him.”

Once in LA, Marius was examined by doctors, who realised the most pressing need for surgery was on his eyes – the scars were stretching his skin and he couldn’t close them to sleep.

Over the next few months, surgeons gave him new eyelids and created fingers from his toes. They also used laser treatment to help with scarring and built him a new nose using cartilage from his rib.

“The surgery was painful, but Marius never complained,” says Ashley.

And the little boy, who’s now 12 and has been adopted by Ashley’s parents, has adapted remarkably to his new life and family  – he’s in high school and has plenty of friends.

“Strangers stare, but he doesn’t let it bother him. With his new hands, he can now play baseball,” says Ashley. “I’m so proud of him for adapting to everything so quickly. His English is perfect, he’s the most remarkable boy.”

Ionut also moved in with Ashley’s family and began studying English at college. Ashley recalls: “I was at uni most weeks, but we met up when I came home at weekends. I’d never considered him in a romantic way before because we couldn’t communicate but, once we could, I started seeing him differently.

“I realised I’d fallen for him when Marius jokingly asked me if I was his girlfriend. I wasn’t – but I started to wish I was.”

Ionut asked her out and the couple were soon inseparable. He proposed on New Year’s Eve 2008 and they married four months later in April 2009.

Ashley says: “He’s handsome and funny and caring towards Marius. When he proposed, I was so happy – I’d always wanted to get married early and have children. My family was delighted and Marius was over the moon. He was a groomsman at the wedding.”

She gave birth to their son Ethan in August 2010 and they’ve now moved into their own home. “Ethan looks just like Marius did before the fire. He loves him and is proud to be an uncle,” Ashley smiles. “And Marius inspires everybody wherever he goes. He never gets down. I never dreamt a short trip to Romania would bring me back a husband and a new brother. I feel so lucky.”

Marius adds: “Since Jessica and Ashley came into my life, I’ve felt better. It’s great. America is my home now, but I’ll visit Romania for a holiday.”

By Natalie Corp