"You are the reason I am here!” he said. “What? You’re saying I’m the reason?” she questioned. He rephrased, “No, I meant, I am the reason you are here!” “Really?” she replied, ”we’ll see about that!” These words were some of the first uttered between us some 13 years ago when we first met at Brad’s 30th birthday party. Upon meeting, we quickly became friends and have since shared many life-changing experiences which have brought us very close together. We moved from the Saint Paul area to NW Minnesota in 1999 and have since established ourselves on our 40-acre homestead with our four dogs. Upon our return from Jamaica, Sharon will begin a new position in Human Resources with Take Care Health Systems in Fargo. Brad works as a Deputy Sheriff/K9 Handler for the Mahnomen County Sheriff’s Office.

Despite an affable, ongoing trivial disagreement over which one of us is the “reason”, we've decided to take our commitment to the next level through the vows of marriage and spend the rest of our lives figuring it all out! Bradley planned the entire event-found a resort, made reservations, arranged the flights & found the perfect dress for Sharon as well as his own attire-he even designed the rings! Brad asked Sharon to marry him around 4:30 AM on October 6th, 2007 after an evening of simply talking about our life together and the direction we were headed. Sharon happily accepted! Our wedding ceremony will be in Ocho Rios Jamaica at 3 PM on February 1, 2008. We’d previously discussed marriage and agreed that we’ve wanted a private ceremony-Jamaica fit the bill.

There is no formal reception per se; however, upon our return from Jamaica, family and friends are invited to celebrate with us at a dinner party/gathering held at one of our favorite restaurants, Yarusso Bros. in St. Paul. Date: Friday, February 8th, 2008 Time: 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm Address: 635 Payne Avenue, St. Paul, Mn Phone: 651.776.4848 Website: http://www.yarussos.com If you are interested in celebrating with us, please email us at bsteich@gvtel.com so we can plan for the honor of your presence.

We leave for beautiful Jamaica on January 29th from chilly St. Paul/MPLS Airport; first to Miami for a layover, then, on to a warm, Jamaican landing around 3PM. Then, there's about a two-hour shuttle ride and we’ll be at the Couples Resort in Ocho Rios, Jamaica, with our feet in the sand and a drink in our hand! We'll return home as husband and wife on February 5th and will stay in the metro area for a few days afterward to visit with friends and family.

We count our blessings and thank God for bringing us together and watching over us throughout the years. He has taught us patience, love and trust as well as how to become better partners for one another. We’d like to thank each one of our family members and all of our friends for the love and support you have given us over the years. We look forward to seeing you at Yarusso’s or when we return home! -Brad and Sharon bsteich@gvtel.com