Tracey Cooney & Kevin Kebede-Berhanu
May 5, 2012
Old Laurelhurst Church and the Melody Ballroom, Portland, Oregon
How They Met: After meeting on eHarmony.com, Tracey and Kevin, both 29, enjoyed their first date at Por Qué No in Southeast Portland. He knew he was smitten after that night, and she was drawn to his engaging personality and humor. How He Proposed: A staycation at Portland’s Hotel deLuxe that began with an afternoon at the Washington Park rose garden and dinner reservations at Gracie’s concluded with a final surprise: Kevin on one knee, holding an engagement ring. How They Wed: One year later, Tracey and Kevin tied the knot with a unique intercultural wedding at the Old Laurelhurst Church. At the reception, all 300 guests danced along with the couple to the tune of “Anbessa,” an Ethiopian wedding song, as they entered the Melody Ballroom. Their menu featured favorite Ethiopian dishes, as well as traditional Amercian fare, served on reception tables decorated in a rich combination of gold, white, and plum. How They Live Happily Ever After: After relaxing for a week in Cabo San Lucas, Tracey and Kevin returned home where she works as a nurse at Kaiser Sunnyside Medical Center in Clackamas, and he as a therapist for a children and family services outpatient program based in East Portland.