Planning a public aifair FOR MOST people, marriage is a very personal time with a public event marking an important day for the bride and groom. Bob and Laura took it one step further. Bob Birarda was looking for some special way to ask Laura Vance to marry him. And the way he chose to do it told. the whole. North Shore of his intentions. A year Jater Bob and Laura are planning a July wedding. Last May Vance was on her way to a fitness class at the North Shore Winter Club (NSWC) when her sister Cindy slowed the car to stop for a red light at Keith Road and Mountain Highway — just outside the club. The NSWC’s outdoor in- formation sign wasn’t pro- moting any 2erobics classes or upcoming events, it said “*Will you marry me Laura Vance? Bob.”’ “Vance said that despite ‘their. previous discussions about the possibility of becoming engaged, this was quite a surprise. Birarda was. waiting behind a nearby signpost _with a dozen roses and the sing that he’d told her he -couldu’t buy yet because he couldn’t afford it. **I wanted to do it a little bit different so that she . would remerber.”’ ““Everybody saw it,’’ he said of the very public pro- posal, explaining that they both got phone calls from friends for weeks afterward to congratulate them or to By Pamela Lang Features Reporter ask ‘Did she say yes?”’ Because they both grew up on the North Shore, many of their friends and family live here. “it was an exciting time.’’ Birarda admits that he doubts he would have been as daring if he hadn’t been certain of the answer. “We'd been talking about it for a while.’’ The couple met in {986 at a Capilano College party. At the time, Birarda was a student at the college while Vance was on her way te becoming a teacher through studies at Simon Fraser University. After the engagement, plans for the wedding began right away. They will be married July 18 at Mt. Seymour United Church and have rented a 140-passenger boat — the Carousel II -— for the reception. “The hardest thing was finding somewhere where we wanted to have the recep- tion. It had to be a little bit different,’’ said Vance. **Because our engagement was such a different thing, we wanted to have some- thing’ that people would ember.*” Choose from : our large selection of. mens and’ ladies wedding’ bands, plain or diamond set. : (See coupon for _ # super value!) Scheduling the wedding for a very busy bride and groom was also rather dif- ficult. Because Vance teaches — she’s in her first year, teaching kindergarten in Steveston -—- they didn't want to get married during the school year. But they also knew that Birarda would be coaching a B.C. all-star soccer team in tour- naments this summer. What was worse is that they didn’t know the exact dates of the tournaments until after they’d set the wedding date. “We just lucked out that his tournaments ended up fF missing that day, but on four days on either side of it,’ said Vance. As a resuit, the honey- j moon will have to wait a few weeks (unless you count the trip to Saskatoon for a soccer tournament the fol- lowing week). But they agreed that this might be for the best since _ they will be able to get the thank you cards out and visit with the wedding guests. Even though Bob and Laura don’t consider themselves a_ traditiona! couple, they are planning a J relatively traditional wed- ding. “t wanted the white dress and 1 wanted to walk down an aisle,’’ Vance said. Bob and Laura will both } be 25 wien they walk down } - that aisle. Sunday, March 29, 1992 - North Shore News — 17 Jessica McClintock at Lesliejane ... a special dress to toast your day LESLIE JANE. 1480 MARINE DRIVE WEST VANCOUVER PHONE 922-8612 4 CT. SH DIAMOND SOLITAIRE now 49500 Reg. $7495. MATCHING BAND now 375° " Reg. $175. t; CT. Skid DIAMOND SOLITAIRE now 9449500 Reg. $5200. MATCHING BAND now *25gee Reg. $500.