Patrycja & Marc’s Fabulous Central Park Elopement
Ever wonder what a classic New York City wedding in Central Park would look like? Look no further! After dating and quickly falling in love, Patrycja and Marc knew that they wanted to spend the rest of their lives together. But they both felt like a traditional wedding wasn’t “them,” and neither was going to a courthouse to tie the knot. Researching their options, they realized that an NYC elopement with their closest loved ones was the perfect idea. Patrycja and Marc were married September 21, 2019 at Summit Rock in New York City’s Central Park – you’ll want to scroll through and check out all of the photos from their beautiful day!
How did you meet? What was your first impression of one another?
We met on Match.com. I messaged him first. I really enjoyed his profile and I thought that he looked very handsome. His eyes looked so nice in the pictures. My first impression messaging him back and fourth, I felt that he was someone that I would love to get to know more. When we met and I saw him face to face, I felt like that I reconnecting with an old friend. We never went through a period of awkwardness. Marc’s first impression of me was that I have beautiful eyes and that I had a gorgeous smile. He told me after we met that he looked at my profile a couple of times and was nervous to message me.
When did you first fall in love? How did you know?
I fell in love with Marc hard and fast. He was so easy to talk to. I felt from the beginning that I was able to be myself. I was able to tell him how I felt and what I wanted. I knew that I was in love with him because I felt so safe around him. I am an accountant and we met in the beginning of April. I would work at 8 or 9 at night and then go to see Marc. I couldn’t go a day without seeing him. When I was around him I felt that I was at home. Marc first fell in love with me not too long after we met as well. He knew that he was in love when he would look into my eyes and see himself. He fell in love with my personality, laugh, drive and enthusiasm. I fell in love with his personality, eyes, charm and smile.
How did you propose or accept the proposal?
Ha! We kind of skipped that part … We were sitting on the couch after work relaxing and I asked him why don’t we just get married. We both knew that we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together. We knew that we were meant to be together. Our families got along well and everyone felt like one big family. He said, “Yeah, we can start looking at getting married and get some ideas.” The next day I started to do my research. By that weekend we contacted Simply Eloped and got the ball rolling … Once we spoke with Simply Eloped, I wanted to find my wedding dress. My mom goes to Poland to see my grandma every summer, and I wanted to find my dress before she went. I also wanted to include Marc’s mom in the wedding dress process. She had two sons and never had the opportunity to be a part of that experience. We went to buy the wedding dress the weekend after 4th of July and then the following week his mom went to the hospital. She had a couple of surgeries for a ruptured aneurysm. Unfortunately, she passed away a couple of weeks after we got married. We are both so happy that she was able to at least see us get married.
What do you love about your partner?
I love Marc’s dedication and his support for me. I know that I can always rely on him to be there for me. He is my other half and I feel whole with him. Marc loves my drive and that I am goal-oriented. He loves and supports me to follow my dreams.
What is the greatest strength of your relationship?
Our greatest strength of our relationship is communication. We always tell each other how we feel and what’s on our minds. We understand each other and we work together towards our goals.
Why did you decide to elope?
Neither one of us wanted the typical wedding. We wanted to have a unique wedding experience for our one of a kind love. We wanted something that celebrated us and our love for each other.
How did you find Simply Eloped?
I started out by looking at City Hall, but I didn’t want to just go to City Hall because it didn’t feel special enough. I started to look for something that wasn’t City Hall but wasn’t a catering hall, either. I stumbled onto the Simply Eloped website and fell in love with the whole experience.
How did you know Simply Eloped was the right fit for you?
We read through the different options and looked at other people’s testimonies. We loved how special everything looked and how easy Simply Eloped made it. It was that one-of-a-kind wedding: a wedding to remember. Not only for us but for our guests as well.
What attracted you to the venue you eloped at?
We loved the idea of getting married outside. We first wanted to get married at Fort Tryon but unfortunately another wedding was booked there for that day. I started to try to find other places and came across Summit Rock. The more I read about Summit Rock the more I loved about it. It is the highest point in Central Park – Central Park is one of our favorite places. We would always go to Time Square to walk around, and then walk through Central Park. It was almost like it was meant to be.
What activities did you do before the wedding? How did you prepare? How did you feel leading up to the moments of your elopement?
Even though we were eloping we still wanted to keep some traditional wedding customs. Marc stayed at his brothers house the night before and got ready there that morning. We didn’t want to have a best man or maid of honor. We decided to have our family and friends’ kids be a part of the wedding. We had a sign girl, a girl ring bearer, a boy ring bearer and two flower girls. That morning I got my hair and makeup done with all of the girls. It was so special. My mom helped me get my dress on. I am a very organized person and I had lists made to prepare. Leading up to the wedding I didn’t feel nervous.
Tell us about your experience with Simply Eloped leading up to and on your big day!
Simply Eloped help us so much! They were able to connect us with so many great people. At our wedding we had a guitarist playing our wedding song, “Beyond,” by Leon Bridges, a photographer, videographer, and officiant. They were all such amazing people. Everything that we wanted they were able to help us with and more.
How did you celebrate after?
We bought out a restaurant on the Upper West Side by Saint John the Baptist Church. The name of the restaurant is Marlow Bistro. It is a cute corner restaurant that serves farm to table food – the food is absolutely delicious. The restaurant had the vibe that we wanted for our guests. The owner was so accommodating … Everything from the decor of the restaurant to the cake. When we first starting planning we thought that we would have about 20 guests. Well, the list kept growing and we ended up with about 70 people attending!
What words of encouragement do you have for those considering eloping?
This was one of the best experiences for the both of us. It is a very unique way to celebrate your love for each other. When everyone thinks of elopement they think that it means simple and small. Our wedding showed that you can have a classy elegant wedding with a mid-sized guest list. Anything is possible once you have love in your life. Simply Eloped let me and Marc show our love to the world on our terms.
Officiant: Sarah Ritchie
Photographer: Gianna Falcon
Videographer: Ed Connolly
Guitarist: Charlie Apicella
Flowers: Flowers by Richard