First of all, I must say, I was so excited about each couple that submitted their story for the chance to win a free photo-shoot. Your stories were cute, fun and inspirational. I was also overwhelmed with the interest in something like this as well, so for those of you who’s name was not chosen, I have a special promotion coming up for you. Stay posted, because this Friday I’ll be sharing the details; and I think you’ll be just as excited as I am!
So without further ado…this morning, the names of all the couples who entered the drawing for the free photo-shoot were all written down, and put in the proverbial hat (really just shuffled around on a table while I closed my eyes!). And the luck of the draw goes to… Steve & Sarah Pritchard! First of all, these two are a beautiful couple. I have had the privilege of knowing them both separately since I was a teenager. I will also never forget how excited the Pritchard family was when Steve met Sarah. Steve’s little sister Miranda was one of my best friends in high school, and even though we were in college by the time the two got together, I knew about Steve and Sarah, and how much everyone thought they were a great match. Sarah, who I first met through my friend Rachel, is a beautiful person inside and out. I know that is said about many people, but when it comes to Sarah, it really sums her up in my opinion. Below is their story in Sarah’s words.
The story of how Steve and I met has a sad beginning, but an incredibly happy ending. In the spring of 2002, my grandpa was diagnosed with lung cancer. He lived in Indiana, and we brought him to Ohio to live with us so we could take care of him in his last days. After his passing, we brought him back to Indiana for his funeral. I was only supposed to stay in Indiana for a week. My mom convinced me to stay an extra week to relax since we had been through so much. On the day I was supposed to leave, one of my friends, Liz, called me up and invited me to spend some time together that night. I told her I was leaving in fifteen minutes to drive back to Ohio, and I would not be able to come over. We agreed to meet up next time. After I got off the phone, I started thinking, “I’ve already stayed an extra week. What’s one more day?” So I called Liz up and said I was leaving the next day and would be able to get together that evening. That was the night I met Steve, who was a friend of my friend Liz and her husband Adam. We exchanged email addresses that night. He emailed me a message and included his phone number. Being the old fashioned girl that I was, I emailed him back and included my phone number. After a few emails, we started chatting online. One night, my computer went offline in the middle of a conversation, and I was unable to sign back on, so I broke down and called him. This started hours’ long conversations each night, and constant texting all day. He wanted to meet my family right away and drove to Ohio to do so. Then we started travelling back and forth to each other’s home states every other weekend. This quickly turned into every weekend one of us was taking the ten to twelve hour round trip drive to see each other. We started dating in July. He asked me to marry him in October and we became engaged. We were married in April of 2003. He helped put me through nursing school and now I’m doing the same for him. I love being in love!
Sarah & Steve, I can’t wait to continue telling your love story through pictures!
xox, Kina