THUNDER BAY – The world’s whitest sand was shifting under Rachelle Court’s feet when she realized her new boyfriend had stopped walking alongside her.
When she turned around, he promised his love would walk with her for life.
Court was celebrating her birthday halfway around the world at the renowned Hyams Beach on the shores of Jervis Bay. When she left Thunder Bay for Australia in the midst of a quarter-life crisis only months earlier, she didn’t know how quickly she’d be back home, shopping for a dress as white as the sand on her favourite beach.
“We walked all the way to the end and he was acting so weird. I knew something was up,” she recalled.
“All of a sudden, he stopped. I kept walking. He called my name so I turned around and he was on one knee and said, ‘will you marry me?’ And he had the ring upside down. I was like, ‘of course!’”
Court met the man who would be her fiancée within three weeks of arriving in Australia and moved in with him three weeks later. She came home pregnant and engaged eight months after she left, ready to plan a wedding as perfect as the ideal of love itself.
Every love story is different but they’re all the best stories humanity has to tell.
Declaring a commitment to love in front of family and friends is the dream moment in those stories – and the wedding industry is the backdrop that promises to make the dream come true.
Over 100 local companies posted their services at the Valhalla Inn on Sunday for the 27th annual Wedding Wishes, a formal expo dedicated to every detail that makes the day special, from limousines to lingerie.
There were five fashion shows throughout the afternoon and a grand prize draw to give away a $10,500 wedding package. The packed ballroom was alive with creativity as the mostly female crowd saw the visions of their weddings come together.
“We have so many different exhibitors that they can really come and get a lot of information and get ideas,” said Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce manager of shows and events, Nancy Milani.
“You’re seeing visuals of everything. Instead of driving to 100 different stores or businesses in the community, it’s basically one-stop shopping.”
