Zachary and Rebekah met the old-fashioned way: on Tinder! After the two swiped right in 2014, it was a whirlwind year of dating and travel. Zachary eventually bought a ring and was waiting for the perfect moment to propose. One Thanksgiving, they came home to flooded bathroom! They immediately jumped into crisis mode and after seeing how they navigated stress in an everyday emergency, Zach realized the strength of their relationship. This connected moment inspired him to get down on a semi-soggy knee and ask Rebekah to marry him! They were married in her parents’ backyard in August 2015. We’re excited to celebrate these two at The Big Fake Wedding Minneapolis!
What was the absolute best memory from your wedding day?
Our favorite part of our wedding day was the community aspect. We were very intentional about making our wedding day a celebration of our community and our people. It was in her parents’ backyard, we had a signature cocktail for the ceremony, her mother officiated, her brothers read a poem, our friends sang the song. Our rings were passed around and “warmed” by the hands and hearts of our loved ones. We were in speechless awe of the love and unity of our people that day.
What is the best gift you have ever given each other?
The best gift we have ever given each other was our honeymoon. We kept to a very tight budget for our wedding and did things very non-traditionally – much to the dismay of my Greek mother. We took the money we would have spent on a traditional wedding and gifted ourselves a six-month, 11-country trip together.
What is the best date you have ever had?
The best date we have ever gone on was a movie. After we were traveling a while, we missed certain experiences of home. One afternoon on the island of Crete in Greece, we went downtown for a date day. We bought a bag full of Greek desserts from a beautiful and delicious cafe and went to the movies. The movie theater in town was an old opera house. We sat in some luxurious balcony seats of the opera house, ate handmade Greek pastries, and watched a movie. It was a much needed date night and a lot of fun!
What inspires you about each other?
From her: I am inspired by his ability to maintain a positive perspective and make connections to people. He is wildly optimistic and it’s so good for me to be reminded daily that seeing the world that way is a viable option. I am also inspired by his work ethic and ability to commit to a goal.
From him: I am inspired by her compassion and empathy. She understands people and can see their soul. She has dedicated her life to helping people access better opportunities and she’s really amazing at it. She has this amazing ability to connect straight to the really important things in life and that makes everyone around her happier and closer.
What is the most awesome thing about your marriage?
We’re a team. We work together and balance each other. We connect and work hard to be on the same page. Life brings up hard stuff for everyone and her and I stand by each others’ side to take tough situations head on. We’re best friends, we’re teammates, we’re a family.
What is “your song” and why?
I don’t know if we’ve decided on “our song” yet. But if we had to pick just one, it would probably be our first dance song No Matter Where You Are by Us the Duo. It has a beautiful, loving message and it’s an awesome party dance song. We like all of those things.
What advice would you give an engaged couple?
1. Have big conversations early in the process and before any wedding planning. Establish each other’s top three priorities for the wedding. Having those pieces clear was hugely helpful in prioritizing what sort of day/experience we were trying to plan.
2. Go to bed angry – sometimes you need the level-headedness only daylight can provide. Most of the time you’ll both wake up realizing a solution was right in front of you.
3. Remember H.A.L.T. – If an argument starts, check if one or both of you is Hungry, Angry, Lonely, or Tired. If you are one of those, halt the argument until that is remedied.
4. If you travel, transportation days are tiring, stressful, confusing, scary, exciting, weird, foreign, disorienting. Stress runs high and emotions tend to magnify. Delay any fight that starts on these days until the next day. Work together to get through the day hand-in-hand. If anything starts, one of us will say to the other, “Travel days aren’t real.”
There are still a few tickets remaining to The Big Fake Wedding Minneapolis-St. Paul! We would love for you to join us. Grab your tickets here!
