Melvin and Maria’s Cool Engagement
For a couple who has been in a long distance relationship, there is much opportunity for surprise. But to truly make it special, Melvin Jay Duatin wanted to go big to ask his wife Maria Monaliza Duatin to marry him again. This time, in a church wedding.
Their romance started many years ago in college. While the two were already high school classmates, it wasn’t until college when Melvin’s family moved to the US that he gathered up the courage to start an online relationship with Maria. While on a two-week leave from the US Navy, Melvin went back to the Philippines to surprise his then-girlfriend with the invitation to tie the knot. Because of the time constraints, their civil wedding had to take place within those two weeks as well, but the groom promised himself that he would bring Maria to the altar. He even promised their parents that they would also be having a church wedding.
Eventually, the couple moved to the US but the plan to pop the question once more remained solid in Melvin’s mind. In December 2016, the groom took his wife to a ski resort in California for a vacation. Little did she know that Melvin already brought the engagement ring and a greeting card with him for the big reveal.
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He told his unsuspecting bride that he would take a video of her snowboarding from the bottom of a hill. As soon as she reached the bottom from her thrill ride, the groom knelt down in front of her to present the card that contained a love letter with “Will you marry me again?” written at the end.
Of the proposal day, the groom captioned on his Facebook: In this frozen cold day, the temperature is low enough to cause water to freeze. But our hearts stay warm with the love we have for each other. She makes me feel like I am the luckiest guy in the world. I can’t be thankful enough for the time we have been together. Of course, she said yes!
