Samantha Steimle, 24, a hairdresser and makeup artist
Christopher (Chris) Reinhold, 28, an operating engineer for Local 30 at a power plant
From: Staten Island, NY
Samantha and Chris love going out to eat and having nice quiet nights together at home. Samantha is a total homebody and loves to entertain friends and family. Chris is a big fan of the New York teams, and the couple enjoys going to sporting events together.
Samantha and Chris’s Love Story:
Samantha and Chris met through mutual friends at the Jersey Shore in the summer of 2010. Chris was instantly smitten and asked Samantha for her number. From that day forward, Samantha and Chris were inseparable. When summer came to an end, it wasn’t as easy to see for them to see each other; Samantha lived in New Jersey and Chris lived in Staten Island. They spent a few months splitting their time between New Jersey and Staten Island, quickly realizing that they had found the one. They moved in together shortly after.
Samantha on Chris:
“Chris is always in an awesome mood. If I’m upset about something, I just look at him and he smiles and everything is better. He’s sweet, considerate, trustworthy and honest. He always does the right thing. He’s a good guy all around.”
Chris on Samantha:
“Samantha is fun and outgoing. She’s family-minded and that’s very important to me. She’s very nurturing and will be a great mother one day. She is always there for me and is my best friend.”
The Proposal:
Chris proposed on Memorial Day in 2012. Samantha had been begging him to go to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, and they planned to go that weekend. But another garden adventure almost sidetracked their plans: Chris had been weeding in the garden and got covered in poison ivy! It was hot and humid out, but Chris had to wear long sleeves and pants. Samantha asked him if he was sure he wanted to go, and he said yes. So they went to the botanic garden and Samantha kept pointing things out to Chris, but it seemed like he wasn’t paying any attention. The next thing she knew, Chris was down on one knee. The rest is history!
Why Samantha and Christopher Should Be The Knot Dream Wedding Couple:
The couple purchased Chris’s childhood home in Staten Island last May. They spent a lot of time and money renovating their new home together. They worked really hard, and their house was slowly becoming a home. Fast-forward to October, when they were nearly finished with the first floor and then Hurricane Sandy hit. The night of the storm, they didn’t think it was going to be as bad as it was. Samantha was making dinner, and they looked out the window and the ocean was coming up the block. When they realized how serious the storm was, they left. The next morning, they came back to find that three-quarters of the house had been flooded with ocean water — everything but the second story. All of the work they had put into the house was ruined. “I felt like it was an Etch A Sketch — we had just finished so much work and the hurricane shook it all up on us,” Samantha says. The couple had planned to have a destination wedding in Aruba in November 2013. They had picked the menu, the location — everything — and were just waiting on the contract. The venue emailed it to the couple a week after the storm, but once they assessed the damage, they realized their wedding fund would now be needed to repair the house. The two feel fortunate that they still have their house since some people in the neighborhood lost their entire homes. The storm was very difficult for them, but it really strengthened their bond and made them closer. “We are ready to rebuild and get married,” Samantha says.
Click here to watch an adorable PTCH video of Samantha & Chris.
