Maeva & Rich in Sarasota, FL

For many, love finds them when they least expect it. Maeva was definitely not looking for a relationship when a classmate called her out of the blue and asked if she’d be willing to go on a blind date. Though she was extremely busy with school, she decided she had nothing to lose. Maeva’s classmate passed along her number to Richard (Rich), and after a bit of phone tag the two finally met up for dinner. The Bride Maeva Louis, 28, equine veterinarian The Groom Richard (Rich) May, 27, Scoville Fellow doing research on Capitol Hill The Date February 26 They began dating, but after just five months Rich (who was in the Army, 82nd Airborne Division, at the time) was sent to Iraq. “It was a defining moment in our relationship,” says Maeva. “I knew I more than ‘liked’ this guy because I could not stop worrying about him or wondering how he was.” Just four months after he returned, Rich proposed, and a year-and-a-half later they tied the knot at a 1920s-era estate in Sarasota.