March 2019 Newsletter
Greetings everyone! Reid here with Best Made Videos®. Last weekend Dorothy and I took a trip over the mountains to Spokane, Washington to hang out with one of Dorothy’s sorority sister’s Lacy and her fiance Scott. These two are getting married in Downtown Spokane on April 20th and needed some last minute help (and also a good excuse to blow off some steam) before they make their union official next month. A short trip with wine tasting and a tasty dinner was just what the doctor ordered! (Lacy is a pediatrician at a local Spokane hospital).
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March also found me recording a ton of new podcasts episodes (including many remotely) with some awesome Vancouver and Portland wedding vendors for my podcast Get to Know Your Wedding Pro. Melodi Ramquist who owns 1000 Stories Events and also manages the Brickstone Ballroom (an absolutely amazing wedding venue right in the heart of Downtown Vancouver) was gracious enough to take some time to record a very insightful interview for the podcast.
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I spent one Saturday a few weeks ago filming a memorial service for a gentleman whose mother had recently passed away. Although it might seem a little odd to videotape a funeral service, it’s actually far more common than you think! Besides capturing the beauty of the church, the decor and guests, it’s also a great way to capture the service, any speeches or kind words from the officiant before saying goodbye to a loved one. This memorial service even featured a dove release, which we captured via a drone flying high overhead.
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I continued doing some corporate videography work for the Better Business Bureau this month. I visitied a few local businesses with some KIRO 7 reps to film some new promo videos talking about the benefits of being an accredited business with the BBB. These are a fun way to not only promote the Better Business Bureau (we are an A+ accredited business) but also to showcase the unique services that these local businesses have to offer. This month we travel to a window manufacturer and skin cancer clinic!
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I ended the month of March filming a drumming promo video for one of my past wedding clients, Ron Fincher. Ron worked for the government for years before finally retiring to spend time with his wife Ina. Not one to sit still however, Ron recently rediscovered his love for drumming! Ron was self taught until age 30 when he finally took lessons and “opened up his world” in terms of discovering what he could do with two sticks and a set of drums! Check out the promo video we shot and edited of a local performance he had with one of the bands he regularly plays with in Tacoma, it’s a lot of fun! - https://vimeo.com/326209911
March actually began at one of the most unique weddings I have gotten to capture in all of my years of shooting wedding videos. Dan Manning, who was the photographer for Erin and Josh’s wedding day, did a good job of recapping the day over at his website - www.danmanningphotography.com
To summarize - About a month ago, Brooke Bosler of Unforgettable Weddings and Events asked those in the Snohomish Wedding Guild if anyone could help her in donating their service for one of her wedding couples. Brooke saw a post in a local moms group on Facebook made by the bride Erin. She then reached out to her to offer wedding planning services, as well as to help find other vendors who might be willing to help. This family is dealing with the unimaginable. Josh, the groom, is battling brain cancer and his prognosis from his physicians hasn’t been optimistic.
Here is Erin’s story that she shared with a local group called Wish to Wed, which helps people in need plan a wedding:
"My name is Erin and I am the soon –to-be bride (Bride) and my fiancé is Josh! Josh and I met in February, 2016 on a dating site that led to us meeting for dinner. I remember thinking to myself, “I should just cancel, it’s just going to end in an awkward whose going to pay the bill and never speak again”. I’m so glad I didn’t cancel…. I remember leaving that restaurant after about two and a half hours of great conversation, GLOWING and calling my sister to tell her all about it. It was honestly the best date I had ever been on, there were no awkward pauses between conversations and I just felt an instant connection to Josh.
We went on a few more dates and the rest is history. Josh and I didn’t waste any time and few months later I moved in with Josh and his two boys, Jack and George. Since I’ve been with Josh we have had the boys at least 5 days a week, so we shortly meshed into this little family. I considered the boys, MY BOYS, and my family accepted them as their own. When you know you know, right? I knew I had always wanted to be a mom, have a family and do the family life. And here it came, in this perfect little package. Our lives were busy, fun and by no means perfect, but we enjoyed the life we had.
Then if you fast forward 9 months to December 8th 2016, our world got flipped upside down. Thursday morning I got a call from Josh’s brother and I still remember it to this day, the only words I got out of it were “Seizure” and “Emergency room”. I told my boss I needed to leave and rushed to the hospital. Once I got there they told Josh’s brother (Mike) and I that the CT Scan showed something, so they needed to do an MRI. Mike and I waited for what seemed like hours and finally Josh was brought back in, and then the doctor. The doctor explained to us that they found a golf ball sized tumor that they could either get a biopsy of or just remove completely. December 9th, Josh was taken in for brain surgery to remove the entire tumor and the next few days to follow were some of the hardest we had ever had. Josh recovered AMAZINGLY from his surgery and was released from the hospital just 2 days later, on my birthday (BEST BIRTHDAY PRESENT EVER). Two short weeks later (December 23rd), we got the phone call saying they would like us to come in ASAP, and this is where Josh was diagnosed with a Grade 3 Anaplastic astrocytoma brain cancer. This type of cancer is a highly aggressive brain tumor that has the tendency of coming back. He did Chemo/radiation for the following months and was out of work for about 10 months.
We were told before he started all of his treatment that it may make him infertile and not be able to conceive any more children. Josh and I decided to not use any birth control from that point further and let whatever happen, happen. Nine months later, after his treatments and just getting back to normal life, we got pregnant. We gave birth to a healthy baby boy, Warren, on 05/31/2018 and we all just felt like our life was great again. We were a family of five enjoying normal things…. Jack was enjoying being in soccer, George was playing basketball and we just enjoyed our life. Josh and I were made very aware this cancer could come back and we definitely had that in the back of our mind but we just had so many things going on that took our minds of that.
Every three months he would get an MRI, and we were always nervous wrecks getting the results. January 30th, 2019 was the day we were dreading. His cancer has returned and his doctor didn’t give us many options besides chemo which she told us would only add a few months to a year life expectancy. A YEAR???? WHAT? Radiation was out of the question and we are still waiting to see if surgery would be another option.
Josh and I have been talking about getting married for a LONG time, but with him being out of work for so long the first go around we were just getting back on our feet and felt like we were in such a good spot in life. I told Josh that all I want is to marry him, I didn’t care about a ring or a wedding, none of this seemed important anymore. We got home, just emotionally drained, tired, depressed and in disbelief. I was texting my mom about possible dates to get married so that the family could be there so she was aware that we wanted to get married. My mom came over just after we had broken the news to the boys because we wanted them to know what was going on, IF it does come down to dad only having a year. She asked to talk to Josh and took him to the room, the boys and I were just sitting on the couch, little Warren in his bouncer, and we were just crying thinking about how we would ever be able to do life without dad. My mom told Josh that a lot of moms pass down their rings and she would love to give him this ring of hers if he would accept it. Josh came out a few minutes later and got down on his knees and proposed to me. I was ugly crying. All I ever wanted was to be surprised for a proposal and I’m so hard to plan surprises for and I had NO idea. He was able to get some words out and I was just crying, and managed to say yes.
I don’t know how we got to this point so fast, planning adream wedding that neither of us could have ever imagined. I shared my story on a mom group that I’m apart of on Facebook and it skyrocketed. I just needed to vent and get everything out and the generosity of people offering to do my hair and makeup, and then one wedding coordinator that offered her help. I put her in contact with my sister-in-law and it’s just been more than I could have ever imagined."
Needless to say I felt incredibly compelled to offer my videography services and we helped these two by providing them a full day of videography coverage free of charge. The reaction I got from Erin alone after watching her highlight video was more than enough payment from these two who have already suffered and gone through so much.
Here's the full recap video from Erin and Josh's special wedding day at Hidden Meadows from the beginning of March. I was so proud of the entire Snohomish wedding community and beyond for everyone pulling together to give these two incredible souls a day that they will remember always. Thanks again Erin and Josh for all of the fun memories, I wish you lots of love!
Sarah and Caleb had the perfect winter wedding surrounded by family, friends and lots and lots and LOTS of snow! These two wed at the end of February at the Mountain Springs Lodge in Leavenworth, Wa. There was no keeping these two lovebirds apart as they warmed each other with lots of hugs and kisses in the cold weather while their bridal parties each rose to the occasion to provide lots of laughs and only "slightly" inappropriate moments! lol Check out this awesome wedding highlight video to see all of the fun these two had on their wedding day!
We released a ton of new episodes of our podcast "Get to Know Your Wedding Pro" this month; including interviews with Rion McConnehey of My Perfect Bartender, Rosalynn and Ernestine of My Perfect Wedding Assistant, Melodi Ramquist of 1000 Stories Events and Phebe Rossi of Nuflours.
Check out the entire podcast feed on: www.soundcloud.com/bestmadevideos. And please let me know if there is anybody that you would like to hear from in an upcoming wedding vendor interview!
Monthly Videography Tip!
There's no real tip this month, I just wanted an excuse to share this killer image from Ina and Ron's wedding at Chambers Bay Golf Course back in 2016. Working on Ron's drumming video last week inspired me to go back and look though their wedding day footage and man, talk about a great day! These two had incredible vows, a spectacular weather day and everything else you could ever ask for to have the wedding of your dreams. If you have a few minutes, check out that highlight video to relive all of the fun for yourself! - https://vimeo.com/181939762
My job wouldn't be complete without including a nice image of ROSIE! Rosie was doing a little sunbathing the other day on the new deck when the sun decided to pop its head out! Love that little friend...
Thank you all for checking out our monthly newsletter! March is almost over and we are constantly meeting with new potential clients for the 2019 wedding season and beyond! As always, thanks again for your support, I'm off to edit some more wedding videos and to update our blog. Have a good one!
- Reid