LOVE ON A MISSION,
Couple had to do some soul searching before making the big commitment
Will Shindler knows a good thing when he sees it. Even on social media.
Back in April 2015, he signed up for a mission trip to Nicaragua through Living Water, a Houston-based nonprofit that provides clean drinking water to disadvantaged communities worldwide.
“Once I’d been assigned to that group, I started Facebooking to see if any cute girls were going,” he says with a slyness. That’s when the profile of a woman named Rebecca caught more than his eye. “I circled her photo around to my buddies and said, ‘My future wife is going on this trip.’ ”
For Rebecca Payne, the love connection wasn’t as immediate, but she did do a real life double-take when she saw the dark and handsome attorney join Cru Houston, a bi-weekly Bible study for young professionals and one of Living Water’s sponsors.
“I had just ended a bad relationship when I decided to do this trip. I wanted to meet new people,” says the 29-year-old Hilton Americas-Houston’s senior catering manager. At the time, she was only looking to pursue platonic relationships. “Every single person I met I was like, ‘no distractions.’ Then Will walked through the door, and I thought, ‘Dang it, he’s cute.’ ”
Will, 32, beelined for an open chair next to the pretty blonde that he recognized from his web sleuthing. He had every intention of waiting until after their August mission trip before asking her out on a date — that way, it wouldn’t be awkward if things didn’t work out — but his resolve withered away by July.
“All he said was, ‘Do you want to go to a pool party?’ ” Rebecca recalls with a feigned annoyance. Will agreed to pick her up, but more than an hour after their designated meeting time, he was a no-show. “My anxiety was going because I did my hair and makeup — yes, for a pool party — three hours earlier.”
He did eventually arrive; his charity golf tournament had run late.
“We were finally on our way when he tells me that the party was actually at his parent’s house. And that it’s for a college fraternity.”
Her nerves shot into overdrive. “I wore this cute bikini, but it was on the sexy side. I wanted to make a good impression.” Did she ever. An out-of-towner whispered, “Oh, this is the one,” a little too loudly when Rebecca walked in.
Please, she prayed, “Let that mean what I think it means.”
The pool party led to dinner at El Tiempo, which turned into dancing at Lumen Lounge and, finally, breakfast at Buffalo Grille. At one point, Will’s brother pulled Rebecca aside and encouraged her to make the first move. But she didn’t have to. Soon after, the pair locked eyes midsentence and leaned in simultaneously for their first kiss.
Will texted Rebecca the next day and offered to cook her dinner. From then on, every night was date night.
“We tried to act like we weren’t dating on the mission trip,” she says. “But everyone called us out.”
That August, in Nicaragua, some of the group drilled wells while others taught Bible lessons to local women and children. When Will got sick on the very first day, Rebecca stepped in to take care of him. “To make sure I didn’t die,” he says jokingly. “Though Rebecca will say there was a night that she decided she loved me.”
By December, they were talking marriage.
“We were talking about getting engaged and what that would look like,” Will says of one particularly emotional conversation. “She told me that if I’d asked her that day, she would have said, ‘yes.’ ”
The couple wanted to be smart about making such a big commitment. Both had been married before and agreed that this time around, divorce would not be an option. So they purchased “Before You Say ‘I Do:’ A Marriage Preparation Manual for Couples” and diligently worked through each devotional together.
Rebecca was also concerned about Will’s parents, who were apprehensive after his previous relationship. Having his family’s support was important to her.
The Shindlers gave their blessing. By August, one year after their trip to Nicaragua, Will still hadn’t proposed. Rebecca began to feel antsy.
Two days before a Labor Day weekend trip to Las Vegas, Will invited Rebecca over to scope out the remodeling progress on the home he had recently purchased.
“I was very, very moody,” she says. Will played off an elaborate setup in the master bedroom — he had covered the space with photographs, champagne and roses — as a belated anniversary present. “He said, ‘You know, we never really did anything for our one year. I love you and I’m looking forward to our future. All that’s left to do is get married.’ ”
Despite her insistence on a simple Swarovski design, Will presented his bride with a large diamond ring that included their birth stones. He’d also planned a surprise engagement celebration with their families next door at his parents’ home.
The newly betrothed couple hoped to wed quickly.
“I told Will that I would love to get married at the courthouse,” Rebecca says. He suggested tying the knot at his family’s condo in the Bahamas, instead. “He took the reins and coordinated everything. It turned out beautifully; honestly, I didn’t do much of anything besides pick my dress.”
Her fiance requested that she wear something sexy for their destination nuptials, so Rebecca went straight to Unbridaled in the Heights. She liked the boutique’s tagline: “The cure for the uncommon bride.”
Rebecca’s dream gown arrived early, four months before their February wedding date, though she wasn’t so lucky with the rest of her bridal trousseau. All of her bags were delayed during a flight layover en route to Nassau.
“Everything that I planned on wearing, including my makeup, was in that luggage,” she says. “Our keys didn’t work to get into our room either — I broke down at that point. Then my sister opened the door armed with dresses and jewelry for me to try on. She came to my rescue.”
Keeping with tradition, the bride and groom parted ways after their rehearsal dinner — just 10 minutes before midnight. The plan was to meet on the beach the following day and then find a quiet spot to exchange vows. But Will had a better idea. He and his family spent the next morning secretly creating a wedding aisle and altar in the sand. The groom picked all of the florals — mostly orange, Rebecca’s favorite color — himself; his mother carefully arranged her future daughter-in-law’s bouquet.
“We drove a little golf cart to this specific spot, and I’d realized what they’d prepared for me,” the bride says. “Will lifted his head and had this huge smile on his face. I completely lost it. That was my favorite moment.”
The newlyweds’ 30 guests cheered as, at sunset, Will and Rebecca were pronounced husband and wife.
Toasts followed during an intimate reception dinner where Will’s brother, the best man, stood up and whipped out his phone.
It all started with a little Facebook stalking, the speech began, when Will texted all of us that he’d found “the one.”
engaged“We about were gettingand talking what that would look like,” Will says of one particularly emotional conversation. “She told me that if I’d asked her that day, she would have said, ‘yes.’ ”