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What it was like to get married during a blizzard in 2015
"I remember it being this beautiful, sunny winter morning."
For Paul and Ashley Desrosiers, snow and support are the two pillars of their relationship.
Around 17 years ago, Ashley had recently arrived to the Boston area and was looking for new connections, when she met Paul in the city on a Friday night.
“The next day we went to Crane Beach and we became fast friends,” said Ashley. The two started dating a year later, and in December 2013, Paul surprised Ashley with a snowy proposal at the Crane Estate in Ipswich.
“He made me put a mask on while we were driving to surprise me,” said Ashley. As the couple pulled into the estate, a snowstorm was coming in.
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That did not stop Paul from hatching a plan to bring Ashley to the Cupola of the Great House. With the help of a volunteer, he tricked her into climbing to the top of the historic building where the grand dome was beginning to be kissed with snow. Then he got down on one knee.
“Hook, line and sinker,” said Ashley.
Their wedding was set for Valentine’s Day 2015 in Rockport. While there was a bit of snow the Thursday before their Valentine’s Day wedding, it seemed mostly peaceful until the reception.
“When my mom and I went to get our hair done I remember it being this beautiful, sunny winter morning pre-snow,” said Ashley. “As the day went on it got grayer and grayer.”
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The day got so dark that as the reception began, the full-blown storm hit Rockport. A camera crew showed up, unannounced, to see the celebration.
“WHDH (Channel 7) news came to our wedding venue and interviewed us,” said Paul. “Everyone at the wedding was snowed in because the Town of Rockport closed the roads.”
Luckily, the conditions did not become dangerous until after the couple and their guests returned to their accommodations in town. The newlyweds even walked home after Ashley’s mom brought her snow boots to the bride.
“We trudged home and it was this beautiful moment of walking in-between [the] eye of the storm,” said Ashley.
When the couple returned from their Hawaii honeymoon a few weeks later, Ashley found her e-mail inbox full of messages about the news feature.
Ten years later, Paul and Ashley continue to build on their supportive foundation even when disaster strikes. Ashley is currently working from California as an Environmental Protection Agency team member to repair damage from the recent wildfires in California, Paul is at their home in Brookline taking care of a family emergency.
“My reflection is that the support continued and grew,” said Ashley. “That’s the marriage that happened after the wedding.”
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