How We Met
On September 8th, 2007, Nicole was making her big move into an apartment in Lyndhurst, NJ. Her college roommate, Jamie, had a room available and Nicole thought it was time for a change. Aside from Jamie, Nicole would also be living with a fellow named Peter, whom Jamie found through a Craigslist posting. Although Nicole was a little skeptical about living with a guy, she was pleasantly surprised at how friendly and welcoming Peter was and the two of them became fast friends. The very night Nicole moved her bed in, Peter had invited her to join him and his friends for a night out in Hoboken. Although she was unable to make it, she was fortunate that one of Peter's friends was swinging by the apartment before heading out to the bar. When the friend arrived, Peter called Nicole over to introduce her to Gianfranco and it was love at first sight!
Proposal Story
Gianfranco wanted to surprise Nicole so he allowed her to make plans with her roommate Viktoriya and Viktoriya's boyfriend for Friday, February 20th. Nicole was craving sushi at their favorite restaurant (Nizi Sushi) so Gianfranco "made" reservations for 7pm. All during dinner, Nicole was drinking wine and yapping away while Gianfranco was anxiously looking at his watch. Finally, dinner was finished and Gianfranco suggested grabbing a cup of coffee at a local coffeeshop, Eros Cafe, where Nicole and Gianfranco had had their first date. On the way to the coffeeshop, Viktoriya called Nicole to let her know that she and her boyfriend would be a few minutes late. Not thinking twice about it, Nicole walked into Eros Cafe looking for a table for four. As they passed by a reserved table for two, Gianfranco stopped and saw that there were puzzle pieces scattered all over the table. He made Nicole sit down and work on the puzzle while they waited for Viktoriya and Patrick to arrive. Nicole hesitated at first but then was intrigued enough to see what it was all about. As they finished the puzzle, Nicole remarked that the picture was a snowflake but she still didn't put the pieces together (no pun intended). Gianfranco then flipped over each of the puzzle pieces to reveal a trait of Nicole's that he loved. Then he got down on one knee and pulled out one last puzzle piece in the shape of a snowflake that said, "Will You Marry Me?". Nicole started to cry and declared, "Yes, I will marry you!" Everyone around them clapped and they were greeted with Nicole's mother, father, sister, Gianfranco's best friend, Viktoriya and her boyfriend. It was a great night!
Bride
Nicole grew up on Staten Island and went to Susan E. Wagner High School. She graduated from The College of New Jersey in 2004 with a degree in Communication Studies. Nicole is currently a Manager of Research at Edison Research, located in Somerville, NJ. In her free time, Nicole enjoys reading, learning new things, spending quality time with Gianfranco and their friends and family.
Groom
Gianfranco was raised in Elmwood Park, NJ and attended Elmwood Park High School.He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Rutgers University and a Masters degree in Molecular Biology from Montclair State University. Gianfranco works as a Research Scientist for NaniRX Therapeutics, a drug development company affiliated with Columbia University Medical Center. He enjoys drawing, playing soccer and making his fiancee laugh.