The Details
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- September 11, 2010 r
- Lake Presidential Golf Club, Upper Marlboro, Md. r
- rPhotos by Wendy Hickok
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rThe couple. Stephania "Stephy" Samaras, the head coach for women's lacrosse at University of Richmond, and Dimitrios Mantziaras, EOS project manager for Honeywell at NASA'S Goddard Space Flight Center, met through Stephania's brother-in-law, who played in a basketball league with Dimitrios. Because they have a similar family background, he thought the two might be a good match—and he was right. On the pair's second date, Dimitrios brought Stephy to downtown Annapolis, where they sat on a bench and talked for hours. Later, when Dimitrios was ready to propose, he brought her back to that very same bench and got down on one knee. The two had a short and sweet engagement, just like they wanted.
rThe wedding. Stephy and Dimitrios wed in front of 220 guests at Lake President Golf Club in Upper Marlboro, a venue they choose because "the venue offered everything we wanted," Stephy says. "We were able to have our ceremony out on the actual golf course. The backdrop was amazing, nature at its best. This venue allowed us to create our special day from ceremony to reception." The ceremony was significant to the couple, expressed by the music they chose: three contemporary Christian songs, "All and Above" and "Angus Dei" by Michael W. Smith, and "When God Made You" by Newsong. "I truly felt in the midst of that beautiful scenery with such amazing weather that God was looking down on us and smiling and surrounding us with his presence and joy," Stephy says. After the ceremony, the guests moved to the clubhouse patio for a cocktail hour while the bridal party took pictures by the lake. Guests sipped on a peach lemonade signature drink
rTheir heritage. Because both the bride and groom are Greek, the wedding had a Greek theme running through it. Their tables were named after Greek cities, and they served Greek food, such as Spanikopita for appetizers. They even showed off Greek dances during the reception. "Our heritage is very important to both of us," Stephania says. "We wanted our guests to experience it."
rThe honeymoon. Stephy and Demitrios spent their first week of wedded bliss at the Playa Mujeres resort in Cancun. From beaches to pools to the activities, "our honeymoon was the best cap-off to our amazing wedding," Stephy says. The hotel room came with two hot tubs, going to show that the resort specializes in everything for a couple, she says. "It was really a dream come true to spend our first week as a married couple in such a magnificent place."
