The Wedding Story of... Joshua & Julie Worden

A Tale of Two Weddings

When Joshua and Julie Worden became engaged, they began to plan their wedding. One wedding. But, as it turned out, one was not enough.

Originally, Joshua, a 3rd Class Naval Petty Officer stationed in Hawaii, had requested leave to marry Julie in their hometown of Fort Wayne, Indiana. When that leave was denied, however, Julie did what any determined bride-to-be would do. She went to him.

On the sparkling white sand of Oahu's Lanikai Beach, with its clear turquoise waters behind them, Julie and Joshua exchanged their first vows with only their parents in attendance. She wore her gown, he wore a tux, and the magistrate performed the ceremony not only in English, but also in Hawaiian. It was beautiful, says Julie, "even though we didn't understand a word of it." Afterwards, the group celebrated the nuptials at a luau.

After several brief deployments, Joshua was able to give Julie the wedding day of her dreams in Fort Wayne, with family and friends on hand to celebrate with them. Joshua's brother, Jaremy, was the best man. The groomsmen included his brother, Garrett, and Julie's brother, C.J. Julie's best friend, Heather, was the matron of honor and Joshua's sister, Sawyer, was a bridesmaid. Also, in an unusual twist, Julie's friend, Aaron, served as a "bridesman."

"He's one of my best friends," says Julie of Aaron, who has known both the bride and groom since high school band camp, where they all met. "We wanted him in the wedding, but the number of bridesmaids didn't match, so we decided he could be a bridesman."

A sailor in the Navy's Submarine Service, Joshua is now stationed in Groton, Connecticut, and Julie is adapting well to the "last-minute" nature of the Navy lifestyle. She plans to study medical coding and transcription--a home-based business that will give her the flexibility to be there to meet Joshua when he arrives home from deployment.

Though he is "all business" on the job, Joshua is more relaxed off-duty. "He proposed to me while he was putting his socks on," recalls Julie. The proposal came after he'd returned from a six-month deployment. "We were getting ready to go to a movie, and he put one sock on and said, 'So, will you marry me?'" Her response? "You know I will--you just have to get down on one knee and ask me." And so he did.