They Celebrated Their Wedding With Two Ceremonies and Two Receptions

Paul and Sarah began their journey together in March of 2018, a little over four years ago when they started talking on CatholicMatch. Sarah had been a user on the site one and off for nine years before meeting the love of her life, Paul, who had also been on the site for three years before they met.

Briefly, before meeting Sarah, Paul took a break from online dating to discern his vocation.

Paul described himself as being “one of those millennials who said ‘I’ll never do online dating, that’s so lame.’” But, he decided that, in the end, the best way for him to find devout women who shared his faith was to use CatholicMatch. So, he gave in! When he felt a strong call to marriage and family life, he returned to online dating. He and Sarah were matched by the online service about a year before they started talking to each other on the site, but when they finally took that first step, there was an instant connection.

Their first date took place on March 31st, Holy Saturday.

Paul chose the Saturday before Easter for their first date because he figured that Sarah would have some free time from work due to the holiday. Ironically, Easter is one of the busiest times of year for Sarah, who works as a Director of Faith Formation for her local church.  

In between Easter Vigil Masses and preparing RCIA candidates for confirmation, Sarah rushed to meet up with Paul on that busy Saturday morning. After spending nine years on CatholicMatch and other various dating websites, she did not have very high expectations for their date. However, as soon as she walked through the doors of the coffee shop and saw Paul, she realized that he was a great guy.

They had a really good conversation about their faith and the books they were reading.

The conversation flowed very naturally between them, and there seemed to be a lot of genuine interest in each other’s lives. It was the easiness of their conversations and the genuine connection they both felt that compelled them to seek out a second date.

Paul said, “I remember having a really nice conversation… there was a connection and I wanted to find out more about Sarah.”

Paul spoke about the moment when he first realized that Sarah could be the woman that he would one day marry. “The moment I knew she could potentially be my wife is when she threw me off of a jetski four months into dating. I just kept saying, “please don’t throw me off,” but she did anyway. Somehow, we both wound up in the water, playing and laughing. She did it in a safe and playful way. I trust her to always have my life, my physical and spiritual wellbeing in mind, but also to push me outside of my comfort zone.” 

Paul and Sarah were engaged on April 17, 2019, on the Holy Saturday of the next liturgical year.

Paul planned their engagement to be very intimate, but special nonetheless. In order to make the day extra memorable, Paul planned a romantic trip for Sarah and himself to return to the locations where they spent their first three dates. After a morning of reminiscing about their first date at the coffee shop where it all began, Paul took Sarah for a walk in a nearby park they had visited on their third date. It was in this park, with a beautiful view of the city of Charleston and the harbor, where Paul got on one knee and proposed to Sarah. Of course, she said yes. To celebrate, the couple lunched at a nearby restaurant where they had met for their second date.

The preparations for their wedding were marked by many ups and downs for Paul and Sarah.

Sarah mentioned that the couple had been warned about “spiritual warfare” that might afflict them leading up to the wedding. Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Paul and Sarah had to reschedule their original wedding date from May 2, 2020, to May 23rd. They made this adjustment with the hope that their immediate family would be able to attend, as things were beginning to reopen in Georgia at that time. As if scheduling a wedding around a global pandemic wasn’t stressful enough, Sarah’s apartment was flooded a week before the wedding!

“It was like that scene from Jumanji where the house is flooding…” Sarah described, now able to laugh about the situation, although it was very stressful at the time. She described how she rescued her wedding dress, which had just been returned by the tailor earlier that week, in the knick of time. “I then wound up sleeping on my Mother-In-Law’s couch for the week before the wedding.” However, with the support from each other and their families, Sarah and Paul were able to overcome the struggles they faced and enjoy their wedding day with their families present.

Because the cathedral where they held their ceremony was so large, they were able to have most of their original bridal party and immediate family attend, which totaled an intimate number of forty or fifty guests. A local restaurant was also able to open up an outdoor patio for their reception, so they were able to have a small party afterward.  

Approximately three to four hundred guests also attended their wedding ceremony virtually, courtesy of the very nice live stream that the parish had already set up. This was great for family members and friends who were unable to attend due to concerns over the pandemic. Paul and Sarah said it was also great to share that moment with so many people who otherwise would not have been able to attend, even in a normal circumstance. 

Funnily enough, in September of that same year, Paul and Sarah hosted another ceremony and reception in Ohio for Sarah’s extended family. A few months after the initial wedding, a priest friend of Sarah’s conducted a vow renewal ceremony for the couple. This ceremony was attended by most of Sarah’s extended family, and the couple was very pleased that they got to include Sarah’s grandmother and other family members in the celebration the second time around.

During their “second wedding” reception, they surprised their guests by changing into lederhosen after smearing cake on each other during the cake cutting.

Paul and Sarah share German heritage, which is very important to their family members, especially Sarah’s grandmother. The DJ put on a polka song and the bride and groom ran out, inviting Sarah’s grandma onto the dance floor for a traditional polka dance.

Paul and Sarah are enjoying married life. They are expecting their first child, a boy, in May of 2022. His arrival is anticipated during the same week of their wedding anniversary.