Last Saturday, John + Rachel got married in Richmond, Virginia! They needed a BIG venue to hold all of their friends and families comfortably! The John Marshall Ballrooms served as the perfect downtown Richmond setting for this group.

Rachel + John are both such sweethearts! They have the gentlest and calmest hearts! I honestly can’t picture either one of them ever getting mad!

Their Filipino families couldn’t get enough pictures with them!! Their cheeks must have hurt from all of the iPhone pictures they were asked to take, but the newlyweds happily took as many as their families wanted without hesitation!!

John + Rachel’s Ceremony took place at the bride’s hometown Catholic church. Both of Rachel’s parents beamed as they walked their youngest daughter down the aisle.

When the Priest prompted them to share their first kiss as Husband and Wife, John did his best to take this moment in slow motion. Very slowly, he held Rachel’s face in both of his hands before a very sweet kiss.

Back at the John Marshall Ballrooms, we did a few Bridal Party Portraits in the gorgeous hotel lobby away from the day’s heat!

Loved these girls so much!! Many of them veteran bridesmaids or brides themselves, they anticipated anything Rachel needed by keeping a fully stocked emergency kit in the bridal suite for her!!

The guys and girls both loved taking pictures and were up for anything we suggested both in the heat or the AC! These best friends made the day very fun!

When it came time for Bride + Groom portraits, we made a quick drive over to the Virginia Capital Building and had the whole place completely to ourselves!! These are some of our absolute favorites!!

How they Met: John devoted most of his time to his career in the Navy and the Veterans Affairs. He was giving online dating a shot, but had just gotten orders that he was scheduled to deploy to Africa for a year. As he was just about to close down his Plenty of Fish profile, a beautiful girl messaged him!!

John relayed that he was bound to a foreign country for a medical mission in the military for almost the whole year of 2015. Also, if there were any prospects of seeing if it would work, they would have to get to know each other over long-distance. Again, he thought to himself, “She’s definitely going to say “NO” and that no way was this going to work! He feared of missing his chance!!

Funny thing is – Rachel was also just about to give up on online dating, too!

To John’s utter surprise, Rachel was willing to give it a shot! Even without meeting each other in person, due to a mix of bad weather + timing, they started dating long-distance with Skype dates on a John’s dial-up connection every weekend in Africa. Each call, they became closer and closer to each other.

Rachel was accepted into a graduate program in Philadelphia for her Masters degree in Occupational Therapy. Another funny coincidence is that John’s pre-deployment work was located right next to Rachel’s school!! The couple doubts they would have ever met in person, if it weren’t for online dating.

Upon John’s return from deployment, they were finally able to meet in person! The couple was able to strengthen their relationship in Philadelphia, conquering one restaurant at a time and exploring the adventures the city had to offer. 

Throughout their relationship, Rachel and John had talked about their future together. 

In February of 2017, John proposed to the love of his life on a gondola atop a scenic mountain!! 

 John surprised everyone by singing to Rachel complete with a HILARIOUS choreographed dance for his new Bride! 

2017 + 2018 Tuckers Photography Couples spotted and looking fine!! We met this sweet couple through Andrew + Michelle!!

John + Rachel,

We are so honored to have shared this day with you and your BIG families!! You and John are absolutely perfect together! I am so thankful that you both took one last chance on online dating!! Your love is so genuine and strong, and that’s only going to deepen as you count your married years together! We can already tell that guys are going to have such a loving marriage because you have SO many marriages in your family cheering you on – ours included.

We love you both!! Congratulations, Newlyweds!!

 

Love,

The Tuckers

 

 

Vendors:

Venue |John Marshall Building

Photography | The Tuckers Photography

Catering | Homemades By Suzanne

Bakery | Imelda Raguindin

Hair + Make up Artist | Kelsea Dayberry

Photobooth | Richmond Photobooth

Bridal Dress | Oleg Cassini

Grooms + Groomsmen Attire | Navy Uniforms

DJ | Ricky Heraldo

Florals | FloraWorx

Videographer | Alida Huynh