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Ron and Sunil’s Wedding

Jackhammers and barricades, scaffolding, and steam rising from manholes in the middle of the street. A group of men standing around with cigarettes in their mouths with varying degrees of five-o-clock shadows. Construction in New York City is as infamous as the L-train to Brooklyn and traffic on the Cross Bronx. The worst part about all of the construction is that after the crew packs up the project they were seemingly working on for years, nothing looks different at all. That being said, when Heather, Capa, and I stepped into the Oculus for the first time I was completely blown away. Somewhere between a spaceship from Star Trek and a modern shopping mall, the pristinely white subway station hub is truly a sight to behold.

Heather and I photographed Ron and Sunil’s intimate wedding ceremony in Riverside Park last August. Their story got picked up and published in the New York Times and it was one of the many fond memories we have from a year mired in stress and toil. I’ve known Ron since he was a regular at my first bartending gig in New York City many years ago, but it has been an absolute pleasure to get to know Sunil over the last year and change. Ron and Sunil’s love is light but rich, jovial and sincere. I love the way they laugh together.

Ron and Sunil, like many couples who got married in 2020, had to change their plans on the fly. Tragically, the place where they got engaged, the Middle Collegiate Church in the East Village burned down last year. They also had to change the location of their reception and wound up making an amazing choice to hold it at The View at Battery Park in downtown Manhattan. With a view of the Statue of Liberty, Ron and Sunil’s guests enjoyed a celebration that began with a renewal of their vows, and a beautiful traditional Indian dance to honor Sunil’s heritage.

Time and time again we have seen our couples adapt to the circumstances of the last year and wind up hosting a wedding for the ages. With an equal dose of anticipation and a huge exhale of relief, we watched Ron and Sunil do the same. The pandemic has forced us to not take anything for granted, including the ways we celebrate marriage. The 2020-2021 wedding season has not been easy on the wedding vendors either but it still stands as possibly the best year of my life. From a healthy pregnancy, to Heather giving birth, to us toting Capa around to 11 states (and counting) I don’t know what else we could’ve done to make this year any better!

Through all the adversity we push forward to build a better future. I can’t wait to tell Capa of all the adventures he experienced when light was first striking his retinas. To remind him of all the people he smiled at and the places he’s already danced. Our lives, like New York City, are in a constant state of construction, but with any luck, we will come out looking as clean and beautiful as the Oculus, or as light and rich as Ron and Sunil’s relationship.