Happily Ever After

Forgive this article this morning, it’s more personal than Disney, but it is something I felt like shouting from the rooftops.

Several years ago, when I and the Gazette were just a fledging entity in the online Disney community, I made some incredible friends. Many of these friends, no matter where we are scattered around the world, will be near and dear to my heart until the day I die. A lot of these friends came from group meals that happened on the fly and introduced this introvert to many new faces. Two of those faces happened to be Andy Jackson and Bonnie Gray Smith.

In just a few days, Bonnie and Andy will be getting married and then sail off into the sunset to start a whole new life. I have been blessed to be able to watch the pair go from being friends to beginning a relationship that would blossom into so much more, and I don’t know how I could be any happier for a couple to have found one another.

Andy and Bonnie have always been there for me and my wife, Aileen, and I don’t know that they even know how much they mean to us. We have run races together, found new old haunts together, peaked over construction walls together, and shared more than few magical moments with one another. Whenever I make the trip south to Florida, Andy is always one of the first people I reach out to, because a trip home is never complete without having a meal and a cocktail with Bonnie and him. And I would be remiss if I didn’t point out that Andy has gently steered me into the perfect entrée or beverage on more than one occasion!

It breaks my heart that I will not be present at the ceremony later this week, but I am there in spirit. The fact that I have been able to witness their love grow in person has been one of the greatest gifts I’ve been granted in my life, and I can only imagine what the future holds for them both. What I do know is that it will be filled with laughter and magic!

Congratulations Bonnie and Andy!