Susan and Zach’s Love is Essential Wedding
In the Spring of 2020 our world came crashing to a halt when the threat of Covid-19 forced us to shelter in place. As wedding vendors, we watched helplessly as countless couples rescheduled their weddings . . .
In the Spring of 2020 our world came crashing to a halt when the threat of Covid-19 forced us to shelter in place. As wedding vendors, we watched helplessly as countless couples rescheduled their weddings and wondered when we would get back to doing what we love. A wave of support for essential workers took hold of us and we desperately wanted to do SOMETHING to give back to those who were selflessly giving of themselves to our community.
Inspired by the Gratitude Project, Conrad and I had the idea to give a FREE wedding to two deserving essential workers. Knowing this idea would be an enormous undertaking we enlisted the help of some of our favorite “friendors” and called Jenny of JPB Designs Wedding & Event Planning and Ken of Amp Event Professionals. Jenny and Ken’s enthusiastic response to Love is Essential laid the groundwork for what would become an 18+ month project to plan the perfect wedding for two deserving essential workers.
We met every week over Zoom to plan this wedding, and as our vendor team grew so did the love and excitement we all shared. After an extensive search and application process we chose Susan and Zach to be our Love is Essential couple. Susan and Zach both work at James A Lovell Federal Health Care Center where they serve our veteran population. They were forced to reschedule their wedding twice because of Covid and had all but given up hope that they would ever have the wedding they dreamed of having.
As we got to know Susan and Zach we fell in love with their humility and loving kindness. We could not have possibly found a more deserving and wonderful couple to gift this wedding to. It was such a joy to plan their dream wedding with our incredibly talented and generous vendor team at the absolutely gorgeous Old Post Office. For all of the hard work and investment of time and resources we would do it all over again in a heartbeat. We only hope that our photos and videos do justice to the beautiful scope of Love is Essential.
Love is Essential was featured on WGN, click here to watch the segment!
Congratulations, Susan and Zach (and Shiloh!), we love you and wish you a lifetime of happiness together!
And to every single individual who worked to make this unforgettable wedding possible. thank you from the bottom of our hearts. We are in awe of your talent and generosity and so grateful to have had the opportunity to work alongside you on this project.
To see all of Susan and Zach’s gorgeous wedding photos, click here
VENDOR DETAILS
PHOTOGRAPHY
Something Blue
PLANNING + COORDINATION
JPB Designs
VENUE
The Old Post Office
FLORALS
Vale of Enna
CATERING
Blue Plate Chicago
CEREMONY BAND
J Livi & The Party
HAIR AND MAKEUP
Tricia Clarke
EVENT DECOR
Yanni Design Studio
LINENS
BBJ La Tavola
RENTALS
Tablescapes Chicago
INVITATIONS
Ink Love and Paper
STATIONERY
Simply Scripted Ink
CAKE
Defloured
DESSERTS
Vanille
BRIDAL DRESSER
The Wedding Dresser
BRIDES DRESS
The Altar
BRIDESMAIDS DRESSES
Anthropologie
MENSWEAR
Emanuele Tuxedo
Susan and Zach’s Love is Essential Engagement Session
We fell in love with Susan and Zach from their application video and Zoom interview and we knew they were our perfect Love is Essential couple. It was so much fun getting to know them at their fall engagement session touring the city together on an adorable tandem bike!
Susan and Zach applied for Love is Essential after hearing about it from a family friend. They didn’t think it was legit at first, and I suppose that makes sense. In what has been a negative and heavy year it does seem unlikely that something like this could be possible. Love is Essential is an act of radical generosity to gift a FREE wedding to a deserving couple, to two essential workers who are serving our community and had to put their plans on hold during the pandemic. We fell in love with Susan and Zach from their application video and Zoom interview and we knew they were our perfect Love is Essential couple. Susan and Zach both serve our community, veterans and the homeless population at James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center in North Chicago. We surprised them with the big news at their sweet new home and then continued the surprise at her sister’s with their closest family for the “engagement party they couldn’t have.” We love this couple and are so excited to share their story with you as we plan their dream wedding!
The last weekend of October we scheduled an engagement session with Susan and Zach. It was THE most fun day, a chance for us to get to know each other better while exploring their favorite spots in the city. Our amazing planner Jenny of JPB Designs arranged for us to use a tandem bike from the cool guys at Bobby’s Bike Hike for a day of adventure and romance. Conrad and I met Susan and Zach at one of their favorite coffee shops, Ipsento 606. It was a beautiful fall day and these two had so much fun learning to ride the tandem bike together, an adorable visual for any relationship.
After some fun at the 606 we quickly stopped on the rooftop at the Robey to take in the amazing city views. From there we headed to the lakefront where Susan and Zach seemed to really hit their stride with the tandem bike, and soon they were talking about wanting to get one for themselves!!
After dark we met back up with Susan and Zach at Metro Chicago, the venue where they got engaged last year at a Kishi Bashi concert. We loved ending their romantic day in the city in front of Metro, reminiscing about that romantic night when they got engaged and dreaming of the day when they will celebrate their wedding in the heart of our beautiful city.
Susan and Zach, we love you and are SO excited for your wedding in 2022! We can’t wait to get to know you better as we continue to plan your dream wedding through Love is Essential!!!
To see all of Susan and Zach’s adorable engagement photos, click here
Love is Essential - Announcing Our Winning Couple!
In the heaviest days of 2020 I longed for something positive to lift my spirits. I sought ways to give back to the amazing essential workers who sacrificed so much for our community. I needed something that would give me hope for my professional future in the wedding industry. Together with my steadfast partner Conrad we dreamed up LOVE IS ESSENTIAL, the gift of a FREE wedding for a deserving couple. A radical gift to encourage, give back, and honor essential workers. A spark of generosity that we hoped would catch fire amongst our peers in the wedding industry.
I called my dear friends Ken of Amp Event Professionals and Jenny of JPB Designs and asked them to come on board. To donate their services and help plan a gorgeous wedding in the heart of downtown Chicago. Over the last 5 months we have met on Zoom every week to plan this amazing wedding. We have welcomed so many amazing vendors already on our journey. We searched the Chicago area for the PERFECT couple to receive this gift. A couple whose love story was greatly impacted by the pandemic. A couple who serves their community in love and put their own love on hold in this time of ongoing crisis.
Susan and Zach applied for Love is Essential after hearing about it from a family friend. They didn’t think it was legit at first, and I suppose that makes sense. In what has been a negative and heavy year it does seem unlikely that something like this could be possible. But we fell in love with Susan and Zach from their application video and Zoom interview and we knew they were our perfect Love is Essential couple. Susan and Zach both serve our community, veterans and the homeless population at James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center in North Chicago. We surprised them with the big news at their sweet new home and then continued the surprise at her sister’s with their closest family for the “engagement party they couldn’t have.” We love this couple and are so excited to share their story with you as we plan their dream wedding!
Congratulations, Susan and Zach, we can’t wait to get to know you better in the coming months! We are so excited to celebrate your dream wedding in 2022!!
Love is Essential - The Old Post Office
When we first assembled our core vendor team for Love is Essential, we started talking about finding the right VENUE. One of the most exciting things about planning a wedding is talking about WHERE your dream day will take place. As a team, we wanted to find the PERFECT location to host this amazing wedding - a wedding to celebrate essential workers gifted entirely by the best wedding vendors in Chicago.
As our conversations about the perfect venue evolved we talked more and more about The Old Post Office. The Chicago main post office was once the busiest in the United States thanks to Chicago’s massive volume of mail from retailers driven by the Montgomery Ward and Sears catalogs. The impressive Art Deco building spans across the Eisenhower Expressway and welcomes travelers to the city as you drive directly underneath the building. After sitting vacant for years, the Old Post Office has undergone a major transformation over the last few years and is now home to several corporate offices and an absolutely breathtaking wedding venue known as Post 433 Events.
We knew that the Old Post Office would be the perfect location for Love is Essential, and were beyond excited when they quickly said YES to generously hosting this amazing event. And when we met Jamie and Leah of The Old Post Office in person and toured this breathtaking building, we were covered in goosebumps imagining the possibilities for Love is Essential.
Post 433 Events has THE most breathtaking spaces for your wedding. From the gilded Art Deco historic lobby to the cool and comfortable Telegram Lounge to the peaceful Library and Vault spaces there is a little something for everyone inside this stunning venue. When Conrad and I first walked in we gasped at the impressive and sparkling lobby. I could completely envision the most beautiful ceremony in that unforgettable space. And as we toured the Telegram Lounge I pictured playing bocce ball there while enjoying a cocktail and views across the Chicago River. Friends, I just cannot say enough about The Old Post Office. Considering everything that is happening now with the Post Office, we feel especially grateful that we will be hosting Love is Essential at this historic venue that celebrates both essential workers and their rich history of service to Chicago. I wish I could photograph every wedding there, and I am incredibly thankful that we will be able to use this space for Love is Essential.
To see more photos from The Old Post office, click here
To learn more about Love is Essential, click here
LOVE IS ESSENTIAL VENDOR DREAM TEAM