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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Timing brought Lou and Vickie together but nearly kept them apart

Couple plans 2015 wedding

 Lou Zoldy and Vickie Little plan a 2015 wedding.  (Quicksilver Photography)
Renée Sande KissTheBride NW Correspondent
If you had asked Lou Zoldy 1 ½ years ago what qualities he was searching for in a future special someone, he might have said someone who shared his notion of time management: “If you’re not early, you’re late.” Vickie Little was not that someone. She was 30 minutes late to their first date. She wasn’t detail-oriented either. While Lou (possibly driven by the writer in him) put a great deal of effort into his listing — expounding on all his likes, dislikes and profound thoughts on life on his “All About me” page on Match.com, she clicked a couple of boxes and left it at that. Lou also sent her a thorough introductory email, thinking it would be the first of a few back and forth email conversations, to get to know each other a bit better. Vickie instead cut to the chase and asked if they could just meet for drinks. ‘Okay, then,’ thought Lou, a bit surprised. ‘Why not?’ First Date It’s Wednesday, January 9, and the snow is coming down. However, Lou still manages to be 5 minutes early to their mutual meeting place—Steelhead Bar & Grill. And there he waits, and waits, getting more frustrated as he tries to slowly nurse his drink. “But then she showed up, with a big smile on her face and all that frustration kind of…melted away,” said Lou. “After some drinks and an appetizer, we went ice skating, which I’d never done before. She skated circles around me but I didn’t fall once.” At least, not literally. Vickie felt something undeniable too. “It was good. We talked for hours—about everything. We put it all out on the table,” said Vickie. After skating, although Lou had to get up early for work the next morning, they extended their romantic snowy night to Bistango Martini Bar for more drinks and conversation, finding they had a lot in common—aside from their ability to arrive on time. Point of No Return Three months later, Lou is hospitalized for Crohn’s disease, which he’d been battling since his 20s. Unexpectedly, what was supposed to be a short stay in the hospital, turned into a month, after complications from a surgery led to Lou needing yet another surgery. “He couldn’t leave the 7th floor of the hospital. I tried my best to be there as often as possible. At the time, I was living in Coeur d’Alene, driving every night after work to Spokane to spend the night with him,” said Vickie. “She was seeing me at my worst - there were days when I just couldn’t keep it together, emotionally, and would break down - and she kept coming back,” said Lou. For him it confirmed that the only concept of time that was really important was that time spent without Vickie was wasted. “Her visits, love and encouragement really were driving forces for me to push through the bad days. Honestly, all I really wanted at that point was her. Nothing else made me feel better.” The Proposal Fast forward 1 year, and it’s another wintery evening. Vickie had been gifted a room at The Coeur d’Alene Resort—her employer— on the 12th floor, with a view and a fireplace. Lou also a gift for her, which he’d picked up at Jewelry Design Center earlier that day. While enjoying take-out sushi and a bottle of champagne that Vickie had been saving for a special occasion, Lou presented her with a card—coincidentally with two champagne glasses and sushi on the front. He had written on the inside “I want to give us a reason to pop the champagne.” After reading the card, she looked up, smiled and said “I love you” as he presented her with a little blue box and asked her to marry him. But she continued just to smile, not saying a word. Lou began to get nervous. After realizing she hadn’t heard him, he asked her again. This time (thankfully!) she said “Yes!” “I remember wondering, ‘Why are your cheeks so pink?’” said Vickie to Lou, as we talked about that day. “I have a hard time from keeping my excitement from showing in my face,” Lou explained to me, with a grin. It’s a “Vacation Adventure Wedding!” Mixing their love of travel, their dog, Arya, and spending time with family and friends, Lou and Vickie planned a “Vacation Adventure Wedding” August 15, 2015, in Bandon, Ore., just south of Pacific City, Ore., where they took their first trip together. “Lou’s family is from the East Coast, and the rest of our guests will be traveling as well, so we wanted to be able to spend as much time with them as we could,” said Vickie. Postponing their honeymoon until a later date, Vickie and Lou are instead renting a big house on the property where they’ll be married, so that friends and family can even stay with them. “I’m really excited for our families and friends to meet for the first time. It’s going to be the first—and potentially the last—time that all these friends and family are all together so we wanted to make the most of that time,” said Vickie. The Future Ahead I’ve never had this kind of relationship with anybody, we’re always on the same page,” said Lou. Does that mean always on the same time schedule, as well? “I’ve learned to relax a bit more when I’m waiting for her…I’ve gotten better about that, I’ve become more patient. What’s really important is I’m looking forward to a long, healthy, and happy marriage to Vickie and everything that comes from that,” said Lou.
Lou and Vickie want to note that as part of their wedding registry, they are giving guests the option to make donations towards Crohn’s research. To see their Kiss The BrideNW announcement, visit here.