Building a life and family together

Connie Maiorini & Ryan Geller

May 19, 2023, in Philadelphia

On the 2016 day of a mutual friend’s annual Wiffle Ball tournament, Connie wanted a beer, and Ryan, who was operating the keg, filled her glass.

They sipped, talked, and soon were paying much more attention to each other than the game. Connie and Ryan had known each other for years, but this was their longest conversation — and the first when both were single simultaneously.

“We hit it off,” said Connie. “I got her number,” said Ryan.

Two weeks later, he took her to Teca Newtown Square to celebrate her birthday. Over dinner, Connie confessed that she cries whenever people sing “Happy Birthday” to her. This was worrisome news, as Ryan had already asked the restaurant staff to sing with dessert. “I thought it might be our first and last date,” he remembers.

The song began and Connie’s eyes filled, but her tears were happy ones. “I thought it was so sweet,” she said.

Within a month, Connie, who is now 29, and Ryan, now 33, were serious.

“Ryan is very unafraid to be himself,” Connie said when asked what drew her to him. “Even at a young age he didn’t care what other people thought. And he was always so motivated, and he made it very clear that he was ready for a commitment.”

Connie is “a ball of energy who always lights up the room,” said Ryan. “She is also very confident, and, even as young as she was at the time we first got together, she had a really strong work ethic. She has strong values and would never let external pressures shift her mind.”

Ryan, a high voltage electrical worker for Peco, had just purchased a house in his hometown of Drexel Hill the month before the couple started dating. Two months into their relationship, the couple adopted a dog, Blue, a pit bull mix, and four months later, Connie, a hair stylist with Prive Salon and Style Bar in Wayne, moved in. In 2018, the couple’s daughter, Mila, was born, and in 2019, Ryan and Connie bought their current home in Newtown Square.

In April of 2021, Ryan crafted a plan to get Connie dressed up, happy, and on the Camden waterfront on a Sunday morning. “He told me we were going to have pictures taken as Mother’s Day presents for our moms, and then we would go to brunch afterward,” Connie said. “You can always lure me with brunch.”

A friend, Jake, was snapping photos of Ryan, Connie, and Mila when Ryan took a step back and knelt. He got right to the point. “Will you marry me?”

“I was completely shocked,” said Connie. “I said yes, and then the waterworks started again.”

Another friend, Dan, walked up wearing a tux and carrying flowers and a bottle of champagne on a serving tray. This was a surprise not only to Connie, but to Ryan. “He’s 6′4″! I don’t know how she didn’t see him,” he said.

Dan was among the 30 friends and family members who knew about the proposal because Ryan had invited them to a celebratory brunch that followed at Ryan’s parents’ home, complete with champagne and music provided by DJ Frank Nitty, also a friend.

Before the couple’s ceremony and reception at the Fairmount Water Works, photographer Ashlee Mintz asked Ryan to wait at a gazebo by the river. Mila ran to her dad to tell him that mom was on her way. And then Connie tapped Ryan on the shoulder. “I really enjoyed the first look,” said Ryan. “I liked the expectation of it, and I loved seeing how beautiful Connie looked, all dressed up for our wedding.”

Then it was go time. “I was worried about having a Friday wedding, that people would not make it to the ceremony, but we had full attendance,” said Ryan. “And we’re lucky it was on Friday vs. Saturday, because it rained that Saturday.”

Mila was the flower girl. Connie’s father walked her down the aisle. Then Chris, a friend who was ordained online, led them through vows and a ceremony laced with humorous takes on Connie and Ryan’s love story.

Ryan reports that only one thing went a little wrong — when it was time for Connie to place the ring on his finger, he offered her the wrong hand. Ryan’s grandmother, who was sitting in the front row, said “wrong hand!” in a strong whisper that made their guests and the bride laugh. Ryan might be the only person who didn’t hear what his grandmother said, so Connie went with the hand she was given. The groom switched his ring to the proper finger as the newlyweds walked back down the aisle together.

After the ceremony, Ryan and Connie locked themselves in the bridal suite and exchanged a second set of vows — ones they wrote for each other — in private. “This was the moment we took to just breathe,” said Connie. “It was our moment alone that I will actually remember.”

Their DJ friend, Frank, was back for the reception for 200, which featured a mix of pop, hip-hop, classic rock, and Spanish dance music. Frank also threw in some extras, including a spark machine. “It almost looked like a Vegas nightclub,” said Ryan. The dancing started before dinner.

This fall, the couple will travel to St. Lucia to honeymoon. In addition to his work for Peco, Ryan is building a real estate business, which he notes he couldn’t do without Connie taking on extra work with their daughter, dog, and household. In the not-too-distant future, they hope to have a second child.

“I love the parent Ryan is,” said Connie. “Father’s Day was a good day for me to reflect that I’m so glad Mila has him as a parent. I made a good choice.”

“Those strong values that originally drew me to Connie I now see her instilling into our daughter,” said Ryan. “She is teaching her to be a strong, independent woman, and I love that. Also, she takes better care of me than I could ever ask for. I’m a little spoiled.”