Captivating Couples 2012

This year, we celebrate couples who have taken the plunge and tied the knot—legally. Hailing from the tri-state area and beyond, measuring the length of their relationships in months as well as decades, they embody what courage, commitment and love are all about.

Samantha & Aneta
Southampton, NY
Samantha, 45, school bus driver
Aneta, 45, mail service company supervisor

There was more than one memorable occasion on October 29, 2011 making headlines in New York. Most people woke up to howling winds and icecovered roads from a freak fall blizzard that left most of the Northeast U.S. under a blanket of snow. The other unforgettable event: Samantha and Aneta picked that day to get married. “It was a magical and blessed day, as there was sun, rain, snow and gale-force winds to start us off on our journey together!” Samantha laughs, keeping an optimistic view of the less-than-ideal weather. Samantha and Aneta’s union was the first samesex marriage performed at the Long Island Community Fellowship Church in Bay Shore, and they were proud to make history. Now raising three teenage children together, the two spend as much time as possible together, whether it’s in the kitchen, on the road, or on the dance floor. They appear faithfully at church every Sunday, an important commitment that makes their relationship stronger. “Our family is building on the strengths of each individual, which is steadily morphing into one remarkable unit,” they say.


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