Wedding day
July 3rd 2025 at Gordon Green, Cleveland
Today
Ages: 27 and 27
Hometown: Chicago
Synagogue: Solon Chabad
How did you meet?
This is always a funny question for us to answer. Our moms will say we met as infants rolling around in a Mommy & Me class for our older siblings. We were also in the same preschool and kindergarten classes. I (Elise), remember having a crush on Eli in kindergarten, and Eli remembers meeting me in 8th grade when we got introduced at a friend’s bat mitzvah.
Do you have any interesting stories to share about getting to know one another?
We were friends for years before ever going on our first date, so we’ve really just grown up together. For perspective, my youngest brother was eight when Eli and I started dating and now he’s going to college. We used to drive each other home from high school parties, we saw our first R-rated movie together, and flash forward a decade later and we were still side by side, reviewing each other’s grad school applications and prepping for interviews for our first jobs.
How long did you know each other before you got married?
Technically 27 years! But we only dated for a quick decade.
When did you know you wanted to marry your partner?
Elise: We started dating at 17, so like all 17-year-old girls, I think I immediately wanted to marry him. I was certain about it after we spent a summer doing college internships in separate countries.
Eli: I moved to Chicago for my job while Elise stayed in Columbus for grad school. It wasn’t until I was without Elise that I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her.
What was the best part of wedding planning?
All the creative aspects of it! I loved picking florals, my dress, bridesmaid dress colors, and playing around with the overall look and feel of the day. My mom is an expert hostess, so this type of thing is in my DNA.
Best advice you received before the big day?
Being fully present for the wedding day. We had gone to our friends’ wedding the year before and somehow felt like we had spent the whole day with the bride and groom even though they clearly were talking to and entertaining their 200 other guests. We made an effort to sit among our friends, dance with everyone, and just really feel like we were part of our own day instead of somehow watching it unfold from a distance.
Were there any conflicts between the two of you or your families in the planning process? Did either of you have to make any sacrifices?
I had full wedding planning authority and Eli had full honeymoon planning authority. Highly recommend for avoiding conflict.
What was the most fun or interesting Jewish aspect of your wedding/partnership?
The subtle traditions that were present during our wedding ceremony were some of the most meaningful. It’s a Jewish tradition to get married in a plain gold band, so I wore a band that all the women in Eli’s family have been getting married in for generations. My maternal great grandfather’s tallit also hung above the chuppah.
You got married on a Thursday night before a holiday weekend. Do you recommend that untraditional route?
Definitely recommend! Friday was the 4th which meant nobody had to worry about working the next day so they could actually party and have fun at the wedding (though I’m sure they would have anyways). On Friday our friends and family came over and hung out at my (Elise) parent’s pool, and we just debriefed the wedding and relaxed together. We basically got to do that all weekend and could just kind of sit in the fun of wedding without moving on from it too quickly. We went with that day because my family is religious and keeps Shabbat, so our likely alternative would’ve been a random Sunday. We lucked out that the holiday weekend fell on the days that it did.
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