St. Luke's Church on the Avenue

Wedding Day

Ceremony

Reception

Our Wedding

Rachel's Version

We met on Bumble, a dating app where the woman has to talk to the man first. I wasn't sure about his profile. There was a guitar. There was a dog. They were the things guys who aren't interesting put on their profile to seem interesting but it turns out they barely play guitar and that dog isn't theirs. His pictures were terrible. He was either really not photogenic or I just really wasn't attracted to him. All this, but for some reason I didn't swipe left. There was something about his profile message - how he sings aloud to music in the car and how he was "tall enough to reach the top shelf" - a deviation from the typical "I'm 6ft, like me". He was probably under 6ft and was smirking at the system. And there was just a feeling that I shouldn't. If he kept coming up in the app, then I'd take it as a sign. I closed down the app without swiping and reopened it, swiped left a lot and then hit his profile again. And again. And again, until I swiped right. What do I even say to this guy? I let a few hours go by and then get a notification - I was super swiped. Me? Really? That never happens. It's guitar-dog guy. Well shoot, if he's this desperate I guess I'll say something. So we started chatting, and I'm still really not convinced but at least he doesn't seem dangerous so we set up a date. Indian for lunch - that's one check box at least. Indian is the best. When I pulled up to the restaurant I saw a guy there. I was pretty sure he wasn't my date. He was too attractive - my date wasn't nearly that attractive. Too bad I wasn't going on a date with that guy. But then he turned around and asked if I was Rachel. This is the guy I swiped right on?? What a catch! We went in for Indian and talked a long time. A really long time, about so many things. We talked for so long that the waiter told us that we were holding up the table for other customers and that we could take our conversation to the waiting area but to please give them the table back. He was interesting and smart and resolved and easy to talk to. Sitting in the waiting area was weird, so we didn't do that. We did go to the neighboring pet store though and continued to talk there. He offered to pay for the first date and I let him - something I only allowed for guys I actually intended on seeing again. I hugged him goodbye - I never kissed on a first date, but I continued texting him afterwards. I definitely wanted to see him again.

Zach's Version

Tired of bad first dates, I recommended we meet at an Indian spot, so that way if the date was bad, at least the food wasn't. Her profile on Bumble caught my eye a little bit differently. I don't exactly know why honestly, but if I had to try to guess, perhaps it was hominess of her holding a pie. Or maybe it was her bio, not in the words themselves, but in how obviously thoughtful she was from the way she wrote.&nbsp; We didn't talk very long on the app. I tried to jump to first dates pretty quickly to avoid wasting my time with people who were only good at talking through text. We didn't get too deep into anything, but had a few things in common, so I thought "why not?"&nbsp; In person, it was a different story. We talked about anything and everything throughout lunch, and after, until the waiter politely kicked us out. We continued talking while perusing through&nbsp;a nearby pet store. She was into animals - a big plus. Oh, but she owns rats - red flag (I'd later find out how wrong I was to think that).&nbsp; At the end of the date, we hugged and said our goodbyes. From the last impression, I didn't think she was into me, so I sent a "I had a fun" type text, expecting a ghost or "thanks, but no thanks" response. To my surprise, she responded back normally, and continued to do so.&nbsp; We proceeded to a second date walking around the harbor, and funny enough, both of us were kinda sick and dressed poorly. Again, the conversation never stopped. I distinctly remember her making me play the guitar to prove I actually could and wasn't just one of those dudes who poses with one for social media and dating apps. Here, I learned she was a fellow metal head and documentary connoisseur - a big win. (Later, us both being metalheads proved useful for long car rides and blasting metal around the house).&nbsp; By the third date, I knew there was something special when she slapped her cookie out of my hand because "it wasn't ready yet." She "made" me try all her speciality baked goods: cookies, nutella brownies, and monkeybread, because it happened to be her birthday.&nbsp; As time went on, the conversation never stopped, nor did the fun. I've always felt a sense of adventure seeing Rae, even now in the little things like coming home from work. I've never met someone who understands me on the level she does and can communicate so well.&nbsp; Seeing her interact with her friends and our community throughout the years, I know how lucky we all are to know such an innately compassionate, caring soul. I can't wait to marry her and "start the next chapter" of our lives, as the idiom goes. That said, we own a house together, so it also would have been a bit awkward if she said no... :p See ya'll&nbsp;in October! Thanks for joining us for our special day :)

Our Story

Close to the venue (but not walking distance)

Delta Hotels Baltimore North

The Westin Baltimore International Airport

BWI Airport Marriott

Gramercy Mansion

Travel

Baltimore Aquarium

Maryland Zoo

Fort McHenry

Things to Do

Clarissa Cooper

Frank Willingham

Emily Bedwell

Scott Benjamin

Tess Sage

Steve Hall

Cara Villareal

Ryan Hickey

Ryan King

Matt Wolf

Wedding Party

Photos

Q + A

Registry

Our registry is pretty small because we don't really need anything. If you would like to give, please consider donating to our honeymoon fund or donating to one of our three favorite charities: 1.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;St. Luke's Church on the Ave:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.churchontheavenuehampden.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.churchontheavenuehampden.org/</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;St. Luke’s became our church home since we moved to Hampden! They are ingrained into the community here and open to people from all walks of life. 2.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The Rae &amp; Zach Heeter Scholarship:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.frostburg.edu/foundation/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.frostburg.edu/foundation/</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;We recently started a scholarship at FSU to support first generation college students. 3.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The Village at Augsburg:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thevillageataugsburg.org/philanthropy/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.thevillageataugsburg.org/philanthropy/</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;TVAA provides benevolent support for Augsburg residents who outlive their resources through no fault of their own.Or a charity of your choice that speaks to your affinity.&nbsp;

Registry: Other Options

Rachel & Zach

Rachel & Zach

Things to Do

Baltimore Aquarium

Maryland Zoo

Fort McHenry