PHOTO BY JADE WILSON
Durham
15 MINUTES Brad Broadway, 36, and Adrienne Schoendorf, 35 How to get married during quarantine using witnesses from Reddit BY SARAH EDWARDS backtalk@indyweek.com
Congratulations on the courthouse wedding! How did you meet?
What was it like to ask for witnesses from Reddit?
BRAD: We met on the internet in Seattle, actually—on a dating app— which actually I think makes the Reddit witnesses even more interesting.
The post itself didn’t get a lot of popularity, but it got some comments from people from Durham who were like, “I work in the area” or “I’m fifteen minutes away if you need something.” The morning of, I hopped back on, and four of the people seemed easily accessible. Two of those people got back to us, and by the time we made it to the courthouse, they were waiting inside. Two of the sweetest people. It was the fastest I’ve gone from meeting someone to being on the verge of tears.
What was your first date? BRAD: Holy cow. The first date basically sealed the deal—for me anyways. We went to a restaurant, and toward the end of the meal, I got up to go use the restroom, and by the time I made it back, she’d paid the tab. And then when she goes to use the restroom, and I go outside to wait, and when she made her way down the stairs, she planted one on me. That was the first time I’d had anything like that happen to me. I was stunned.
Adrienne, is that your version of events? ADRIENNE: That’s pretty accurate, I was pretty forward. I liked him right away, and we had a terrific first date. I was excited to be able to surprise him by picking up the tab—I did think that was pretty baller. And yeah, I kissed him. I had excess confidence. We’ve basically not parted ways since.
Were you planning a big wedding before this? ADRIENNE: I don’t think either of us grew up dreaming about the perfect wedding. Like Brad said, this worked for us, and we’re not devastated about not having a traditional wedding. BRAD: It was pretty close to my perfect wedding. The whole thing cost $120. ADRIENNE: $110. 6
September 2, 2020
INDYweek.com
ADRIENNE: It was very moving. I was really touched by the number of strangers that would respond to this random freaking request on the interwebs to help out some strangers in love. Being new to the area and not knowing anybody, I was like, “People are here to meet and greet and wed us? This will go fine.” BRAD: I got several DMs afterward from people asking how it went. I don’t know if the witnesses can be considered ambassadors of the internet or Reddit or Durham, but regardless, they were such phenomenal ambassadors of the world at large during an otherwise difficult year. 2020’s been rough.
What do you love about each other? BRAD: Oh goodness. Look—she’s smart and gorgeous and funny, and that combination makes me realize that I’m swinging way above my weight class. ADRIENNE: Brad is handsome and clever and sweet and kind and takes great care of me. We take great care of each other, I believe. He’s someone I’m excited to grow old with. W