Said I Do – July 15, 2017
The best moment of the day was, during the reception, looking out and seeing all our guests; and subsequently partying with them on the dance floor, at the bar
and in the photo booth. There’s nothing better than having all the people you love in one room.”
John Lennon once sang, “Nothing’s Gonna Change My World,” but today, the world of technology has changed everything. In the case of Melissa and her new husband Christopher, it was responsible for bringing them together — through an online dating site. After analyzing each other’s photographs and typing thousands of characters, the two knew it was time to meet face-to-face.
“We first met at a coffee shop for the typical ‘screener date,’ as we like to call it,” Melissa recalled. “It was the most easy-going date I had ever been on.”
That feeling of comfort and familiarity led to an ever-growing closeness between them. “It also doesn’t hurt that we share a love of movies that borders on obsessive,” Melissa noted.
Yet she never experienced an “ah-ha” moment in which she knew that Christopher was “the one.”
“It was just something that happened over time,” she said. “As we kept dating and got to know each other, we realized that we had similar values, a similar sense of humor and made a great partnership.”
Christopher felt the same way but, when he suddenly popped the question, Melissa was caught off guard.
“We were hanging out at his place,” Melissa recalled. “He was working in one room, and I had just finished some online shopping in the other. He came out of the room, held my hand and started giving a speech from one of my favorite movies. I recognized it right away, and eventually noticed how uncharacteristically nervous he was. He finished his speech, asked the question and put the ring on my finger. I was so surprised! We had talked about getting married, but I did not see the proposal coming.”
Melissa and Christopher were married at the Wellington National Golf Club on July 15, 2017, with Melissa’s sisters Stephanie Marty and Kimberly Lee as bridesmaids, and Parry Silcox as best man. The bride wore a gown designed by Oleg Cassini and carried a rosary wrapped around the stems of her bouquet.
“It was my ‘something blue.’ My godmother gave it to me, and she passed away before the wedding, so it was also a way to remember her,” Melissa said.
Photographer Isabel Belfor captured all their special moments — from their first dance to “Le Vie en Rose” by Louis Armstrong, to the Chinese lion dancers at the start of the reception.
“Our bridal party entered first and the performers entered as we did,” Melissa said. “It was our big surprise moment of the reception, and everyone loved it.”
Their honeymoon included a road trip to Orlando, St. Augustine and Charleston, S.C., but for Melissa, the reception will always remain one of her brightest memories.
“The best moment of the day was, during the reception, looking out and seeing all our guests; and subsequently partying with them on the dance floor, at the bar and in the photo booth,” she said. “There’s nothing better than having all the people you love in one room.”
