‘Truly unforgettable’: A massive nor’easter couldn’t stop this Boston couple from getting married – The Boston Globe

When Drew Baker and Maddie McNamara learned a massive blizzard was barreling down on the region, threatening to disrupt their carefully planned wedding day in Boston, they were in a bit of denial. They held onto hope the forecast would change, but the projected snow totals and wind gusts grew more daunting by the day.

On Monday, the young couple awoke to snow furiously swirling outside their window at the Newbury Hotel. Hardly able to see beyond a few feet, Baker and McNamara, who grew up together in Sudbury, could only laugh.

They were initially disappointed, but soon realized “this would make for a truly unique and unforgettable story,” Baker, 27, who works in data analytics and lives in Boston with McNamara, 27, an attorney, said by email.

They would get married during a historic winter storm, the Blizzard of ’26. Just them, in a hushed city blanketed in snow.

Baker and McNamara had their first brush with love in eighth grade, dating for a little while. They remained good friends through high school and rekindled their romance after both moved to Boston in 2021, Baker recalled.

A little over a year ago, Baker proposed to McNamara in the Seaport, on a pier near a spot they used to go to dinner while looking out at the water.

“We love everything about one another,” he said.

They originally arranged to hold their ceremony at the Boston Public Library on Monday, a small and intimate gathering with their immediate families by their side. When it became clear the weather wasn’t going to cooperate, stress set in and the couple tried to come up with backup options, Baker said.

“All of which also fell through,” he said. “Which led us to what we did.”

The couple never considered postponing their wedding. They were committed to the date and didn’t want to wait another moment to start their married life together, Baker said.

They booked a longer stay at the hotel and celebrated with their families over dinner at 1928 Beacon Hill on Sunday evening. Their loved ones headed home before the storm arrived.

The next morning, as the storm raged, the couple read their vows to each other from the comfort of their suite. They got ready together, with McNamara stepping out to put on her long, white gown and returning to share a quiet, emotional moment with her betrothed.

When it came time for the ceremony that evening, the couple was joined in the hotel room by their wedding photographer, their officiant, and the officiant’s fiancée, Baker said. Their families tuned in on FaceTime.

“It was such a surreal moment to talk to them [after] and still have them there virtually, despite all of the snow,” he said. “They were all so supportive and knew this would make for such a funny story to look back on.”

Newly married, the couple braved the storm to take pictures around the city, leaving their winter gear back at the hotel.

They smiled together on an empty Newbury Street, made snow angels and threw snowballs in the Public Garden, and jumped into the growing piles of snow on Commonwealth Avenue. In a world apart, like a snow globe made just for them, they embraced and kissed.

“It was so special to spend that moment together as the snow came down,” Baker said.

At the end of April, they will travel to Japan for their honeymoon.

“We will always look back on this day thankful that we have each other,” he added. “We know that no matter what happens, we will be there for each other and always make the most out of any situation.”

Shannon Larson can be reached at shannon.larson@globe.com. Follow her @shannonlarson98.