LOVE IS IN THE AIR IN SAN MARCOS

She said, “YES!”

Saturday, February 14th, Rachel Schneider and Robbie Rollins will be married in San Marcos at Kissing Alley, located between the Black Rabbit Saloon and Shade.  Local businesses have come together to offer a variety of services as their gift of “love” for this couple on Valentine’s Day.  This wedding is sure to be the first of its kind in San Marcos. 

“We are incredibly humbled by the generosity of so many, who are helping to make one of the, “most important” days of our lives so very special.  Words cannot describe how grateful we both are!” said Rachel Schneider, the bride.   Rachel notes that she has absolutely nothing to do with the planning of her wedding day since that is being coordinated by Krys Nelson, SM Art Enthusiast and Volunteer Extraordinaire.  “Who wouldn’t want to get married in Kissing Alley? I mean, REALLY!”  “Rachel and Robbie’s personalities mirror downtown San Marcos’ eclectic vibe. It was after all…a perfect match!” said Krys Nelson.

In a matter of a day the wedding attire, flowers, cake, hair & makeup, food and reception and the honeymoon suite have all been gifted.  “I was overwhelmed by the immediate responses I received, everyone was more than willing to be part of Rachel and Robbie’s day.”  The common thread here was, “LOVE” and everyone I spoke to still believes in that.  It’s nice to know that LOVE is alive and thriving in San Marcos.” said Nelson.

Main Street Program Manager Samantha Armbruster adds “we think downtown is a perfect location for weddings and are glad to be a part of the first one in Kissing Alley.  These days, couples are looking for unique and fun locations & venues and downtown San Marcos is the perfect “Pinterest-style” wedding location. Providing an eclectic mix of art, culture and a small town feel with a number of professionals that can help a bride’s vision come to life.  It’s also a great central location for those who have family traveling, San Marcos is less than an hour from Austin and San Antonio and within driving distance to both Houston and Dallas.”

Fate has a way of showing up when we least expect it.  That was the case for Rachel and Robbie.  Over 20 years ago, the two were living in Anchorage, AK and were classmates in high school, even sharing a locker next door to each other.  They had all the same friends and went to all the same parties but considered one another as “just” friends.  As it sometimes happens, life begins to unfold and high school friendships gradually start to take a back sit to life.  This was true for Rachel and Robbie. 

Now fast forward to December 2014, the two re-connected via Facebook. Robbie lived in Florida and Rachel had moved to Texas. “The truth is he dared me to call him one night and after our first phone conversation, we talked every night after that.” said Schneider.  Robbie, a lover of all things sports was in a bicycle accident, so Rachel decided to visit him for New Year’s Eve.  After spending 5 days together they decided to have a long distance relationship not knowing when they would see each other again.  One evening soon after, Robbie’s cousin came to him and asked what was holding him back from being able to be with Rachel. As fate would have it, Robbie’s cousin was headed to Texas and was leaving in 2hrs.  Not much time to pack or think about it, Robbie was in Texas in less than 24hrs….and well the rest as they say, is history.

The proposal:

After talking to Rachel’s father and asking for her hand in marriage, Robbie popped the question to Rachel. Although Rachel is currently living in San Antonio, she has been having a love affair with San Marcos for some time.  So when thinking about where they would marry, they thought about surrounding courthouses for the Valentine’s Day Mass Ceremony. “I knew I wanted our wedding ceremony to be unique and a bit quirky, something that represented who we are, and celebrated our eclectic spirit.”

As a Texas State University student and local artist, Rachel was “So in love with San Marcos and the community that it seemed perfect to marry the love of my life here.” said Schneider.  “I can’t wrap my mind around the fact that so many people are coming forward to do such nice things for us.  San Marcos will forever have a special place in my heart.”

Sponsors and partnerships for the wedding include; Scott Gregson, Gilbert Perez, San Marcos Main Street Program, HUB Cycle Shop, Greenbelt Alliance, Root Cellar Bakery and Arts Advocates of San Marcos.  Owner James Wilson of SHADE will host the reception following the ceremony to include live music with T-Bone and the Bluetones.  Maxine Schaffer a celebrated floral designer at the Floral Studio will create the bouquet and boutonniere.  Mary Vigil at Out of the Blue Salon will provide hair and makeup for the bride and July Moreno, Owner of Jo Jo’s Food Trailer will serve up her specialty, Jo Jo’s Street Tacos and River Shells for dessert.

Guests will start arriving at 3:00 pm & the ceremony is due to start at 4:00.  It is being officiated by local Judge Joanne Prado.

The alley will be blocked off from traffic starting at 2pm on Saturday afternoon for set-up and will re-opened to local traffic at 6 pm