Newlyweds separated by deployment reunite
Cedarville grads kept their relationship alive despite deployments.
Cedarville grads Addison and Mariah Love were sent to different parts of the world 14 days after their 2019 wedding.
Two Dayton natives who have spent the majority of their married life apart have reunited after more than a year.
Newlyweds Addison and Mariah Love were both deployed just 14 days after their wedding on Nov. 23, 2019. Mariah was deployed to Saudi Arabia for one year and Addison was deployed to locations throughout Europe.
Mariah returned to the United
States in December 2020 and is stationed at Fort Bliss in Texas. On Monday, March 8, Addison returned to the U.S. from Germany and is headed to Fort Bliss, where Mariah is stationed.
Mariah and Addison’s family welcomed Addison back with a “hero’s welcome” at Fort Campbell in Kentucky on March 8.
“We used FaceTime a lot, trying to call about every other day,” Addison said. “Weekends also became our time for FaceTime dates. We’d turn on movies at the same time and watch them together.”
The couple met and became
friends during their freshman year at Cedarville University ROTC training, although they didn’t begin dating until their senior year. When they eventually got engaged, the pair already knew their first year of marriage would be spent apart.
Mariah said they’ve unfortunately seen marriages crumble during deployment. But she said it’s easier to lean on each other “knowing that you’re both grounded in the Lord.”
“Whoever was in the states would try their best to send letters and packages,” Mariah said. “I tried baking Addison cookies one time. They got annihilated in the mail to complete crumbs — but it’s the thought that counts.”
As their time apart wound to a close, the couple anticipated life together again after a year of only text messages and video chats, Cedarville University officials said in a release. Though they know that future deployments may separate them again, they are grateful to be stationed together.
Contact this reporter at 419.463.4837 or email sarah. franks@coxinc.com.