A very special friend of mine got married over the weekend: Amy Hartfelder. I met Amy in 1991…not at the usual place a 5th grader would meet a new friend – like school or softball or church. (Yes we went to church back then.) We met the Hartfelder family in 1991 at Kennedy Space Center. Random? A bit.
We were visiting Cape Canaveral because the weather that day was rainy and dreary (typical for a Floridian March.) Kalin, a 1st grader, was adamant about sitting in the front row on the top deck of the double-decker bus and, because of his running and probably pushing old folks aside, he got his wish. Sitting next to us was another family of four. One thing led to another and my parents got to talking to the parents of the other family. Turns out they were going on the same cruise as us the next day – the Big Red Boat – and staying at the SAME hotel after the cruise – the Disney Inn. Most importantly, the four adults also learned they were all big fans of Bud Light. To make things more ironic – they figured out Amy and I were born five days apart.
Amy and I never talked that day, but I did kind of stalk her. She had these enormously high bangs and I thought she was SO cool. Every time she got off the bus to take a picture, I asked my parents for the camera and followed her. Apparently I was a weird kid.
The next day we boarded the S/S Majestic and not 20 minutes after we checked into our cabin there was a knock at our door. It was Amy, and her cousin Amanda whose family had joined them on the cruise. We’ve been friends ever since that knock on the door. For several years when we were young I would fly to Michigan and Amy would fly back to Omaha with me. Her family has been to Omaha several times; including for my wedding and my parents’ 40th AND 50th birthday parties. My family has been to Michigan, numerous times including for Amy’s graduation from Central Michigan. (We were supposed to go to her brother’s wedding, which was 9/15/01. I will let you guess why we weren’t able to attend.) Our families have been to Chicago, Toronto and Lake of the Ozarks together. It’s truly a friendship of fate. And while we don’t see each other as frequently anymore, it’s a friendship that picks up right where we left off.
We were thrilled to be at the Hartfelder/Reuther wedding. It was a gorgeous event and I wish Brad and Amy a lifetime of happiness!
Below: The gang at the rehearsal dinner (minus Trevor & Kalin who were unable to attend)
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