We revel in sharing happy tales about how our couples’ became engaged and then the ensuing wedding and reception magic that follows. In 2020, our first story to tell was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, as Tracy Pfizenmayer and Steven Carr had to regroup and reschedule their big day.
The beauty of love is that it’s strong, resilient and — in this case — determined. We’re happy to report that we rescheduled the happy couple’s event to Oct. 2, 2020. Tracy notes, “Needless to say, having to postpone our wedding because of a global pandemic is the last thing we were ever expecting. We actually had sent our invitations out about two weeks before deciding to push things back, so each RSVP that trickled in afterwards was a reminder of what we were going through.
As soon as the CDC recommended canceling events with more than 50 people, we knew it would be better to get a jump on rescheduling, instead of hoping to ride things out. Thankfully, Robert Ryan Catering & Design made it super-easy to switch our date; it was like we had been planning on Oct. 2 all along with how quickly everything got moved,” Tracy explained. “We only checked availability with Robert Ryan and with our photographer, but luckily all of our other vendors were able to accommodate the change.”
The Reschedule
Robert Ryan’sevent managers have been working overtime to keep dreams on track for Tracy and Steve, and countless others who’d planned special moments during the stay-at-home orders. They’ve heard a lot of sentiments, but one thing everyone has expressed is not only hope, but gratitude for support. Tracy explains, “A lot of people have reached out to share their love and support for Steve and I during all of this, which has been so wonderful. I think they expected us to be really grieving everything that we’ve missed during this time (besides the wedding, we also had to cancel my bridal shower, bachelorette party and 30th birthday). But to be honest, the whole situation is so bizarre and unexpected that I think it is almost too much to wrap our minds around still. “The fact that our wedding that we’d been planning for a year should have happened by now feels like a dream,” she added. “Occasionally something will get to me — a wedding on a television show or seeing others share pictures on the anniversary of their big wedding — but it’s usually a short-lived sadness. We are mostly just thankful that we are together through all of this and that (knock on wood) our family and friends have not been struck by much misfortune of any kind. Plus my cat, Nigel, is super-happy that we have been home with him for these countless weeks!”So, how did Tracy and Steve come to meet, fall and love, and become engaged? Read on and enjoy a “she said, he said” retelling of their love story. After all, who doesn’t need a feel-good, happy tale these days?
She Said (Tracy)…
How did you meet, and was it love at first sight?Tracy: Ours is the classic love story of two strangers meeting at a bar. My friend and I were having one more drink for the night before heading home, when Steve’s friend bumped into me and told me Steve was a millionaire. I’m still waiting for evidence of that though ….Tell us about your first date!I had been pretty sick (just a common cold!) and had a cough that I couldn’t shake, which was paired with the occasional complete loss of my voice. Steve was really sweet prior to our first date and researched things we could do where we didn’t need to speak much, but I could tell he didn’t really want to do something like a wine-and-painting event, so we went out to dinner like we’d originally planned. I think we were both a little too nervous to eat a full meal because we ended up just sharing some apps. Fun fact: Even though we’d agreed on which apps to get, Steve ordered a totally different bunch! There was a World Series game on that night — one where the power went out and the game was delayed for a long time — and we stayed out until the end of the game, so I’m pretty sure we both had a great time.What are some of your favorite dates or things to do?We’ve been fortunate enough to experience some great things together. We’ve seen countless concerts (that might be more for my benefit, though), and we’ve done some international traveling together, including Iceland, England and Spain. As long as I can sneak a tasty meal in there somewhere, Steve is usually down for the ride. When things were really busy, our favorite nights were at home and watching a movie from the couch!What do you have most in common?Our love of reality television. Just kidding — that’s probably one thing we differ the most on, except it isn’t really too hard to convince Steve to watch The Bachelor with me. What do you have least in common?I definitely live life with a “go, go, go” mentality. Steve is active and pretty busy, too, but he makes time to relax more of a priority than I do. Steve also doesn’t mind parking far away from something and walking for a while, but to me a good parking spot is one of the most valuable things you can have — however temporary that might be.When did you know?I was pretty sure that Steve was going to be a big part of my life a few weeks after we met. You can never trust the first couple of dates — ever heard of beginner’s luck? Of course, I needed to wait a while, until my friends and family had a chance to give me their opinions, before I could let him know that!How long did you date before you got engaged?We were together for almost 2 1/2 years when Steve proposed. I had started grad school the fall before so I didn’t think we would be getting engaged for a while. Then I noticed that, after every trip we took, one of my friends would always voice their surprise that he didn’t propose, so apparently it was on other people’s minds for quite a while at that point!Tell us about the proposal!Steve proposed to me in Gettysburg where I went to college, and where we have visited together a few times over the years. The weather was actually awful that day, pouring rain on and off, so Steve ended up asking me in our hotel room. I joke that we were in one of my favorite places (Gettysburg) and one of Steve’s favorites (a Marriott). Neither one of us really remember what he said, and I was caught really off-guard. He was being way too calm earlier that day for me to have ever suspected he had been holding onto such precious cargo.Anything else you’d like to add?Steve’s been such a source of support to me throughout our whole relationship, but that has been especially true since I started grad school. He helps out so much with cooking meals and doing the chores; I can’t remember the last time I took out the trash! He’s also become a very good cat dad and best friend to my feline child, Nigel.
He Said (Steve)…
How did you meet, and was it love at first sight?Steve: We met on Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. It was Halloween weekend in West Chester, and I’d recently returned from a long work excursion and was home celebrating with friends. I’m not a big fan of Halloween and we went into a bar that we usually don’t go into, and Tracy just happened to be next to my friends. She immediately caught my eye and I introduced myself and asked her to go out with me the next week. Her friend encouraged her to say “yes” and I got her phone number. After staying out way too late, we parted ways with hopes of a date in the near future. I tried my best to play it cool and not overdo it with texting before we would see each other again.Tell us about your first date!Our first date was Nov. 2, 2016. It was a Wednesday night and game 7 of the Chicago Cubs/Cleveland Indians World Series. As a big sports fan, it was hard for me not to pay attention. Tracy even said we could just sit near a TV so I could watch the game. I was like, “wow this girl is awesome,” but we got seated at a table completely out of sight of any televisions. We were at Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant in West Chester, and we were both very nervous. Tracy had a little bit of a cold and her voice was practically gone, but she agreed to go out with me and I didn’t care at all — I was happy that we were there. We got our menus and both agreed we should just order some appetizers and just talk and get to know each other. The waiter came back and I ordered for us — except I was nervous and messed up the whole order. Tracy went along with it! We ended up going to another bar and watching the rest of the World Series game. It was a late night out for a weeknight. The night ended and I felt great; I knew that I could have just gone on my last first date. We didn’t see each other for another week, but had another great date when we did. What are some of your favorite dates or things to do?Tracy’s favorite things are going to concerts, searching out great candles and wine, and staying in with her cat, Nigel. I’m a big sports fan and play them and watch them. I’m a die-hard Philadelphia Eagles fan and Tracy respects that; we always watch every game. We’ve gone on some great vacations to London, Iceland, and Barcelona. Our goal is to see as much of the world as possible!The first three to four months of dating involved a lot of fun excursions to restaurants and bars. My 30th birthday was approaching, and she planned me two surprise dinners. They were great and we had a blast. 2017 was a big year; all of our friends were getting married and every weekend was either an event related to a wedding or an actual wedding. Everything was exciting and we knew our time would come, but were just enjoying the ride. Summer of 2017 we both moved to Malvern and were pretty serious. There was not enough time in the day in 2017, and 2018 flew by equally as fast. When did you know?December 2018 I knew I was ready, so I bought an engagement ring. I threw Tracy off by telling her we wouldn’t be getting engaged until she was done with graduate school. I was very nervous. This was the biggest thing I was ever going to do, so I was excited and scared. I went to the store and found the perfect ring and hid it for several months. I was so nervous I got shingles, which altered all my plans! I finally got the courage and discussed my plans with Tracy’s parents. Like all parents, they were excited and supportive but wanted assurances that I was all in. I told them I was and I got their blessing. Tell us about the proposal! It was April 19, 2019, and I’d planned a trip Gettysburg to visit my newborn niece. This threw her off again, and I did my best to play it cool. I didn’t do enough research on where a good spot to propose was and it ended up being a very rainy day so when we arrived to the hotel I felt that I couldn’t wait any longer. Tracy looked and me and thought something was wrong at first, but then I got down on one knee and fumbled some words that neither of us remember: She got the idea, saw the ring and said yes to my proposal! Anything else you’d like to add?We were full-speed-ahead after that, and everything was so busy and so fast. We were excited to pick a location and a date.The High Point was the second venue we visited on our first day exploring options, and we fell in love with the location. It was beautiful and perfect. We knew that we wanted to get married at that location. We continued searching, but I knew we found our place.
At Robert Ryan Catering & Design, We’re Here for You
We know the stay-at-home orders have made life stressful. We’re here for you to put your plans in motion when the time is right. We’re in this together!Schedule a consultation with our of our event managers when you’re ready to find your place or to reschedule your special event Did you know anevent at home might be an option?
Robert Ryan Catering & Design plans and executes over 400 events each year, boasts a five-star rating on WeddingWire and has received WeddingWire’s Couples’ Choice/Bride’s Choice Award seven years in a row. Learn more about Robert Ryan Catering & Design and tour our venues. Subscribe to our e-newsletter for exclusive offers, up-to-date news, and recipes from our executive chef.
Feature photo by Joel Thomas Photography; All other photos by Tracy and Steve’s family and friends.
