Chris & Nelson
The Setting : Providence holds a special place in the couple ’ s hearts . “ It ’ s a beautiful , vibrant city that we wanted to share with our non-New England guests ,” Chris says . “ The Providence Public Library [ PPL ] came as a recommendation from a friend ; the layout , the architectural detail and the downtown location were a perfect combination .” To fit the library theme , the grooms designed bookmark savethe-dates , modeled their invitations after a check-out slip ( complete with key dates in their relationship ) and rented a card catalog from the PPL to display seating assignments . “ We also visited vintage bookstores to find books that would interest to our guests and ensured those were at their tables ,” Chris adds .
The Process : Chris and Nelson agree that one of the best parts of planning was attending the tastings . “ We know tastings sometimes don ’ t reflect the quality of the food when it ’ s mass prepared , but Russell Morin really delivered ,” says Chris . “ We had rave reviews from even our pickiest of guests !” Another highlight was designing the centerpieces . A botanist himself , Nelson couldn ’ t have been happier with Robin Hollow Farm ’ s work . “ We provided a color palette , some basic preferences ( we like looser , free-flowing arrangements ), and a few ‘ do not use flowers ’ ( sorry , carnations !), and their team produced incredible results ,” he says . The worst of it , though , was planning from afar . “ We didn ’ t have the opportunity to meet with vendors faceto-face , and since we planned our wedding pre-pandemic , Zoom wasn ’ t yet the norm ,” Chris explains .
The Meet Cute : Nelson first took notice of Chris on the first day of their Providence College calculus class , but it would be another month before he ' d find the courage to introduce himself at a freshman social . Soon after , Nelson pulled a Mean Girls move and suggested a study date even though he knew all the answers and Chris , well , not so much .
The Engagement : After years of long-distance dating culminated with a joint move to Washington D . C ., the couple decided to visit their alma mater . “ We took a walk around PC ’ s campus and along the way we stopped at the former soccer fields off Eaton Street — the same spot where we watched the sunrise and shared our first kiss all those years ago ,” Chris says . “ It was there Nelson braved the rain puddles and got down on one knee .”
The First Dance : The grooms thought of “ You ’ re Still the One ” by Lee DeWyze early on in their engagement . “ Most love songs explicitly state male / female pronouns or make other references that simply didn ’ t describe our relationship ,” Nelson says . “ But , after spending most of our sixteen-year relationship long distance , it ’ s undeniable that , ‘ We mighta took the long way , we knew we ’ d get there someday ’ and ‘ we ’ re still together , still going strong ,’ are lyrics that ring true to us .”
The Highlights : “ Just prior to walking down the aisle to an instrumental version of Sam Smith ’ s ‘ Lay Me Down ,’ I was overcome with emotion . I tried to hold back the tears ... No one wants to ugly cry with everyone ’ s eyes on them !” — Chris “ For me , it was the ceremony exit . There was something extremely powerful about walking hand-in-hand through a crowd of cheering loved ones . The years of anxious anticipation simply melted away , and I felt like I could be fully present to celebrate our love with everyone in attendance .” — Nelson
94 | ENGAGED IN SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND 2022