Meet the Finalists
We are delighted to introduce you to the finalists in our Win a Wedding competition. We had the pleasure of hosting them for an evening of fizz and canapes so that we could get to know them a little better, and we can truly say they are all wonderful couples.
But now the vote goes over to you! Below you will find a paragraph from each couple explaining – in their own words – why they deserve to win a wedding.
***VOTING IS NOW CLOSED, A winner will be announced shortly!***
Leroy & Linzi
“We are Linzi and Leroy and we have been together for 22 years. We have always planned to get married, but life has had a few twists and turns that has meant we have never been able to set the date. Leroy first proposed to me in 2005 prior to the birth of our daughter, we thought we had all the time in the world, but I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2013, and although Leroy asked me to marry him then it would not have been the wedding we always dreamed of, so it went on hold. During my recovery another disaster fell our way when our home suffered a major fire, again the wedding was on hold. Also, at this time my lovely dad passed away, so a wedding was not even in our thoughts. Just when we thought it was safe to make some plans along came Covid-19, I work in the NHS and Leroy is a key worker in Logistics, so we worked our way through the pandemic putting life in general on hold as did so many others. Over the years we have concentrated on being a committed couple and raising our three amazing children who are now in their teens and would love to see mum and dad get married. So, with the support of all our social media friends we could be lucky enough to win this fantastic opportunity to get married at the beautiful Kedleston Country House, it would finally be the wedding we have always wanted, fingers crossed.”
Louise & Gemma
“Hello! Our names are Louise and Gemma and we have to say we are astounded to have got this far in this competition! Anyway, a little about us…..we met through work so were originally colleagues, however this quickly grew into a fab friendship. Over time and in more latter years that friendship turned into something more romantic, something which neither of us were expecting! As a couple we are just normal really (as normal as you can get!), we like simple things like the great outdoors, quality time with those we care about and good times with lots of laughter!
“Our love for each other is a captivating and profound emotion that transcends boundaries and touches the depths of our souls. We feel fortunate to have a healthy and fulfilling relationship with a strong foundation of mutual respect, shared values and trust and we only hope to build on this in future years. Following a Parisian engagement, it would mean the world to us if we were to win this wedding, we have lots of plans for our future and to have the wedding at Kedleston would just be fantastic as the starter, for the next element in our journey!”
Sallyann & Sallyann
“Hello everyone we are the two Sallyann’s, yes I know but it’s true! We live together in Swadlincote, Derbyshire.
We met over 4 years ago at our local boxing club, I’ll never forget that moment when Sallyann Vadiavaloo first walked in the club, it was love at first sight.
“In January 2021 Sallyann Mortimer popped the question, I proposed just outside the boxing club, it is our special place.
We are a happy go lucky couple who work hard, Sallyann Vadiavaloo has worked for the NHS for over 20 years doing what she does best, caring for her patients with respect and compassion. Sallyann Mortimer works for Attenborough Doors Ltd, providing her best customer experience. As everyone is aware, due to the current cost of living, Sallyann and I have struggled to save any money for our special day, winning this prize would complete us as a couple. It really is a chance of a lifetime to win our dream wedding. Kedleston Country House would be the perfect venue for our wedding, the place is so beautiful. Please vote for us so we can finally be the two Sallyann’s with the same surname!”
Chris & Chloe
“Hello, our names are Chris and Chloe. We have been together for 4 years now, and it’s been an incredible journey. Before I met Chloe, I had been the victim of fraud which left me with a devastating amount of debt at the age of 19. I could no longer afford to move out and I had given up on my financial future. A few months later, I met Chloe and within a week we were dating. I’d never met anybody so kind and caring before. She brought out the best in me straight away, and encouraged me to start saving money again. A few years later, we found out we were going to have a baby, and so needed to move out into our own house. Through love, determination and hard work we were finally able to buy our first home. We spent several months renovating, and managed to move in a week before our son was born.
“As you can imagine, life has been moving very fast for us – but there’s no one else I’d rather be with to encounter it. I applied for this competition because for the past couple of years all of our time and energy were spent on saving, renovating and providing for our son – and so I took a step back and realised I’d have nothing without Chloe. I know this is her dream, just as it is mine too.”
