About
The Couple...
Barry and Shareena
both loves the outdoors. Ever
since Barry introduced the art
of fly fishing and fly tying
to Shareena, they have been doing
these activities together as
much as they can. If they are
not out fishing in the streams
or ocean, you'll find them going
to Antique shops and spending
most of their time at home cuddling
with their four cats - Balls,
Samson, Nessy and Maximus.
How We Met...
They met through their
close mutual friends, Dr. Michael
Adler and his wife, Merilyn on October
8, 2004 and realized immediately
how much they have in common. They
have been together ever since as
their friendship turned into love.
The
Engagement...
Date:
February 22nd, 2007
Barry
and Shareena wanted to get
away from the frigid cold
weather of the northeast so,
the couple planned a last
minute vacation trip to the
Keys in late January. On the
other hand, Barry was also
planning a surprise proposal
without Shareena's knowledge.
Three weeks before their departure
for Florida, Barry and his
partner in crime (and closest
friend), Charlie have been
going to Philadelphia, New
Jersey and New York for weekend
business trips (as they often
referred to Shareena), but
in actuality, the two "goofy" guys
were in a mission to shop
for an engagement ring for
her. As Barry searched through
thousands of antique-style
settings, prong designs and
the most exquisite diamond,
he finally found what he was
looking and got everything
custom made to his perfection.
He finally picked up the ring
few days before their vacation
and he even had the chance
to show the ring to his parents
and as well as to Shareena's
parents when they were over
for a post-Valentine luncheon
that weekend.
On
the day of their departure,
Barry carried the ring securely
around his neck in a shoelace
along with a business-sized
card note stating "engagement
ring" that
his mom gave him. He made
these extra precautions so
that no one will ruin the
surprise just in case he got
stopped by the securities
at the airport. They left
Wilkes Barre on February 21st
for Florida and their first
stop was at Key Largo, then
they continued their trip
down to Key West. For their
first two nights in Key Largo,
they stayed in a newly built
fly fishing hotel called "The
Dove's Creek Lodge" with
a fantastic view of the Atlantic
Ocean. A place that Shareena
accidentally stumbled upon
while making their hotel reservations
online.
On
their first day, they had
breakfast at the lodge. While
talking to the hotel's manager
about fishing and other things
to do in the area, they decided
to take the double glass-bottom
kayak from the hotel to explore
Dove Creek and Dove Key. During
their first half of the day,
Barry and Shareena kayaked
through Dove Creek, which
was a saltwater channel that
went through canopies of mangrove
trees. The view was so spectacular.
There they saw all sorts of
sea and wild life...from parrot
fish, box fish, mangrove snappers,
sergeant majors, barracudas
to herons, egrets and perlicans!
They even caught some fish
on a fly!!! By 1 p.m., they
decided to kayak to Dove Key,
which was a remote mangrove-encrusted
island located in the northeast
region from the hotel. It
was actually a place where
Shareena wanted to go fishing
even before they left for
vacation. While preparing
for their trip, Shareena looked
at Satellite images of the
Keys and found Dove Key, which
is located only a couple miles
from the lodge. She thought
it would be a perfect place
for them to explore. Little
did they know that it will
take them about an hour and
a half to get there by paddle!!!
With
all their hardwork and effort,
they finally arrived at the
island. Excited as they can
be, Barry and Shareena quickly
got out from their kayak and
was ready to explore the island.
Shareena found an old coral
bed filled with all sorts
of shells while Barry fished
along the area. Shareena never
knew that Barry was actually
looking for a shell as well,
where he would tuck in the
ring and for Barry to finally
propose to her. Barry actually
had everything planned out.
He even brought a shell that
he borrowed from his mom's
collection, but when they
were getting ready for their
kayak trip, he left the shell
in his coat pocket in the
car. However, Barry was able
to improvised...
According
to Barry, he found the perfect
shell (a nice size shell with
black and white stripes) where
he placed the ring inside.
He kept placing it on top
of rocks where Shareena could
visibly see it, but somehow
she kept turning around and
missing the shell. So with
Barry's help, he finally coaxed
her and told her that he sees
this beautiful shell on top
of this rock. Shareena was
so excited as she saw the
shell. She quickly walked
over there to take a look
at it. As she was looking
down at the shell, she saw
a shiny metal sticking out
from it and within seconds
as a small wave gently rocked
the shell and she saw a diamond
as well! At first she thought, "wow" she
found a piece of jewelry that
someone had lost at sea, maybe
a piece of earring or something
that a snail got hold of.
She was so excited and almost
leaped for joy as she found
the most amazing treasure.
She quickly turned to Barry
and told him of what she had
found. Barry was getting nervous
so, he told her pick up the
shell before a wave would
take it out to the ocean.
Finally, Shareena picked up
the shell and held it in the
palm of her hand and there
she saw an awfully huge diamond
ring in a beautiful white
gold setting! Little did she
know that the diamond ring
she found was actually her
engagement ring from Barry.
Before she knew it, Barry
came closer and asked her
to marry him. Shareena looked
at Barry in astonishment and
kept asking him, "is
this ring really for me???" because
all the while she thought
she found a treasure out in
the sea. It was indeed a magnificent
treasure, but to actually
received it from Barry was
even more spectacular! Barry
had to tell her firmly, "yes,
it is for you!" At
that point, Shareena answered
him "yes" to
his question without any hesitation
as she gave him a hug and
a kiss. She still couldn't
believe it and was still starring
at the beautiful ring in front
of her.
Barry
finally clipped the ring out
from the shell where he had
it securely coiled in a small
piece of bandage (only a Surgeon
like him would do!) and he
finally did the honor of placing
the ring on Shareena's finger.
They hugged and kissed again
as they told each other how
much they love each other.
From that moment on, tears
started to flow down Shareena's
cheeks with extreme joy and
happiness. She was still in
total shock. So, she just
took the kayak and sat in
front of it. She paddled gently
alongside Barry as he fished
around Dove Key. She was still
in total awe and couldn't
help, but recount all the
events and details that led
to their engagement. As you
could have imagined, she had
a million of questions to
ask Barry! But as the sun
started to set in, it was
almost time to leave Dove
Key. But in Barry and Shareena's
mind their trip to Dove Key
was truly worth it and a meaningful
one, too! It will be the place
they will always remember
and keep in their hearts to
eternity.
Barry
and Shareena are extremely
happy and they couldn't wait
to spend the rest of their
lives together-forever.
