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Leaf & Greg’s post-Maria Puerto Rico Wedding

November 26, 2017

Ashley Wright

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What a special day this was, for all of us! Leaf & Greg were our first couple to be married after Hurricane Maria struck our beautiful island … and their wedding day represented love, rebirth and Mother Nature. They said it best, in their words:

What it was like to be married in Puerto Rico only a month after hurricane Maria hit? I hear that question often. Would you believe me if I tell you my wedding day was the happiest day of my life? Before the hurricane I was like most brides, my mind was racing coming up different ideals sending e-mail after e-mail. Ashley always responded in a timely matter and with positive energy. Every e-mail I got back from her made me feel like I am not a crazy bride, she got me, she understood me. Ashley worked her magic and came up a wedding plan that was perfect for me and my husband. It was exactly what we wanted, a unique wedding that included adventure, romance and celebration. Her plan was perfect, and we could not wait. Then the hurricanes came!

First Irma came, it only touched Puerto Rico but I was worried about our plans, however an e-mail from Ashley reassured me that everything was okay. Then the big bad ugly wolf Maria hit, a category 5 hurricane. I mourned for our wedding and felt guilty for having these feelings because my heart broke for the people who lost their lives, homes and are suffering in the aftermath of the hurricane. I was a mess. Me and my groom could not postpone our wedding because we had a honeymoon cruise that was still sailing out of Puerto Rico on October 28th. We were devastated.

Ashley was trying to make the original plans work, but we could not contact the hotel that we were planning to stay at and where our wedding was supposed to begin. I was a bride that wanted a celebration afterwards, I wanted that bridal moment, I wanted to dance.

Ashley was always honest with me, she told me she had no answers yet and to give it more time. She tried her hardest to keep the original plan. Sadly, me and husband were coming to the conclusion that we would be taking a cruise that was supposed to be our honeymoon as just another vacation cruise. I did look at other places to get married in the Caribbean but no matter how nice the other places looked it was missing one important element….Ashley and her team. Ashley’s positive energy radiated thru the internet from the first moment I looked her up. I knew she was a beautiful soul and I wanted her to marry us.

One day I received an e-mail from Ashley saying to forget the original plan and she suggested a new plan. She told me how beautiful the beaches still are (we wanted to be wed on a beach) and she understood my love of music and dancing. She said that she will put a party together for us with music that we will have our celebration and she said one thing that made my heart and soul feel whole again “…the people needed this celebration as well”. I knew this new plan was the right wedding plan for me, for us. How perfect, a wedding is about rebirth and love. Yes! I want my wedding to give back to the people.

We stayed in Isabela at the beautiful Villa Tropical, which Ashley recommended and set up for us. Our room was right on the beach. It was very romantic, and the owners Trevor and Jennifer were the kindest people we ever met. During our stay the villa was run on a generator at night. Which was fine with us, during the day we walked the beach looking for seashells and soaking up the beauty. Ashley was right the beaches are still beautiful. At night time we had light and air conditioning. On our wedding day Ashley made sure to have the generator turn on while we were getting ready. The owners, had no problem with this request and were happy to do this for our special day. Ashley found the perfect place to hold our wedding, Playuela in Aguadilla. This place was blessed. It was sad to see broken palm trees on the Island, but in Playuela the palm trees were standing tall and proud, it looked like no hurricane hit it there. The beach was secluded, just us and Ashley with Marquez and Angel taking photos. The ceremony was just as we always dreamed it to be. It was beautiful.

After our wedding we headed to Rosalinda’s restaurant where to my surprise Ashley hired a band. We walked in and the crowd cheered, and music was playing. I got to meet many different people and I made many new friends. Our wedding was very magical. Me and my husband were able to have our first dance, we got to cut our wedding cake, and most important we had love all around us. Our magical night continued as we traveled to Tsunami restaurant where our mini reception turned even bigger. We danced the night away. Ashley gave us everything we wanted and more for our wedding.

Thank you, Ashley, so much for making our special day even more special. And I was right…………..you have a beautiful soul.

With much love and gratitude, Leaf and Greg, October 27, 2017

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