My friend invited me to a party so he wouldn’t go alone. When we arrived, two houses on the same property hosted different events: a formal cocktail party and a costumed one. Dressed for the formal, we knocked on the right door first. Jennifer opened it as a cute demon with glowing green horns. She instantly detected my French accent and greeted me in French. We stayed at her party, and the rest is history.

Our first wedding was pure magic. When we applied for our license, the earliest date was my birthday, one week away. The clerk encouraged us. We procrastinated all week trying to find an officiant with no luck. On the day, a friend returning from a funeral offered to marry us. We called our closest friends and family and everyone showed up! In just 6 hours we planned everything at a beautiful house on Lake Washington. It felt like months in the making. Truly magical.

We never had a honeymoon. We married on a week’s notice on my birthday, then held a second wedding for family and friends who missed the 6-hour rush. Life got in the way. If we win, we’d use part of the $20,000 for that dream trip together. The rest would complete The Fireman’s Prayer: the first orchestral bagpipes-and-choir anthem I composed and we're currently producing, with all proceeds supporting firefighters’ non-profits. It would let us finally celebrate our love while giving back.