Kimberly Laprad and Jayden Sink, both 24 and from Roanoke, Virginia, spent about a year planning their wedding. They planned a beach wedding on Hatteras Island, a long, narrow island off the coast of North Carolina, on September 25. Laprad chose the area because she often went there on vacation as a child.
Then a powerful storm called a nor’easter hit the coast. The couple drove to the island early with two friends and got there around 4 a.m. Less than an hour later, the storm washed out Route 12, the only road onto the island. Officials declared a state of emergency. The backyard of the beach house they had rented, where the ceremony was going to take place, was flooded. Most of their 45 guests could not reach the island, and the musicians, photographer, cake maker, and even the person who was going to marry them all cancelled.
“It wasn’t just disappointing,” Sink said. “It was defeating.” The couple had already spent 30,000 U.S. dollars (about 42,000 Canadian dollars) on the wedding, money they could not get back, and they could not afford to plan it all again.
The night before the ceremony, Laprad had an idea. “Let’s just invite the whole island,” she told Sink. A friend posted the invitation in local Facebook groups, and within about 20 minutes, hundreds of people said they would come.
Help came quickly. With no place left to hold the ceremony, Stacey Saunders, the manager of Frisco Woods Campground, offered her campground for free. She is also allowed to perform weddings, so she led the ceremony herself. Local restaurants sent food, people brought several wedding cakes, and three photographers, a DJ, and a florist gave their time for free.
About 460 people signed the guest book, and more than 400 cars showed up. “Twenty four hours ago, we were all strangers,” Saunders said during the ceremony. “Now, we’re not.”
Gwenyth Airhart, a wedding photographer who was on vacation on the island, took pictures that day. “I thought it was the most beautiful thing,” she said.
Now the couple want to give something back. They have started an online fundraiser to help pay for a new sidewalk on the island that saved their wedding day.
Sources: The Washington Post, WDBJ7
Kimberly Laprad and Jayden Sink had spent a year planning a beach wedding on Hatteras Island, a long, thin island off the coast of North Carolina where Laprad had spent childhood vacations. The two 24-year-olds from Roanoke, Virginia, had chosen September 25 for the big day. Then a nor’easter, a powerful coastal storm named for the strong winds it brings from the northeast, began to build.
Warned that the weather was turning, the couple left home early and reached the island with two friends at around 4 a.m. Within an hour, the storm had washed out Route 12, the only road onto the island, and officials declared a state of emergency. The backyard of their rented beach house, where they had planned to say their vows, was underwater. Most of their 45 guests could not get there, and the musicians, the photographer, the cake maker, and the officiant all cancelled. The couple even thought about hiring a boat to bring people over, but decided it was too dangerous.
“It wasn’t just disappointing,” Sink said. “It was defeating.” They had already spent US$30,000 (C$42,000) on the wedding, money they could not get back, and they could not afford to start over.
The night before the ceremony, Laprad came up with an idea: “Let’s just invite the whole island.” A friend posted an open invitation in local Facebook groups, and within about 20 minutes, hundreds of people had replied that they would be there.
The island took it from there. Stacey Saunders, the general manager of Frisco Woods Campground, opened the 15-hectare (38-acre) property and its pavilion to the couple for free, and because she is an ordained minister, she offered to lead the ceremony herself. Restaurants and caterers sent food, people turned up with wedding cakes, and three photographers, a DJ, and a florist gave their time without charging a cent.
On an island of roughly 4,000 residents, about 460 people signed the guest book, and more than 400 cars pulled into the campground. “Twenty four hours ago, we were all strangers,” Saunders said as she married the couple. “Now, we’re not.”
Gwenyth Airhart, a wedding photographer from Luray, Virginia, was on vacation on the island and photographed the wedding. “I thought it was the most beautiful thing,” she said, and she called it the most memorable wedding of her five-year career.
Now the newlyweds want to give something back. They have started an online fundraiser, “Sidewalks for the island that made our wedding possible,” to help build a sidewalk on Hatteras, and they plan to return to the island every year on their anniversary.
Sources: The Washington Post, WDBJ7
