Hello there
Janice, 41, and Chris, 42, grew up in Philadelphia's Holmesburg neighborhood on opposite sides of the Holmesburg Ramblers Football Field. They went to elementary school together at St. Bernard's, but went on to separate high schools and separate lives - until 2001.
Janice was tending bar at Curran's Irish Inn. Chris' business, Maddalo Crane Service, is nearby, and sometimes he would stop in for dinner. That June, Curran's sponsored a Wiffle ball tournament, and Chris organized it. At the event, Chris saw Janice and asked a mutual friend, "Is that Janice from grade school?"
After that, he started coming into the bar regularly. Chris' first request for Janice's phone number came through their mutual friend. Janice said no. She had gotten divorced about two years prior and was raising three children - dating wasn't on her agenda. But Chris kept coming into Curran's, and he asked her directly the second time. "I'm just not dating anyone," she said.
Several weeks later, Chris stopped by after attending a funeral. Instead of his usual dirty work clothes, he was wearing a suit and tie. Janice saw him walk in, and he made a beeline to her. "Are you going to give me your phone number or not?" he asked.
"There was just something about his approach," Janice remembered. "He was really charming." She caved.
How does forever sound?
Chris and Janice settled into family life together, living in Abington. He is one of 11 children, and to Janice's three - Katlin, 18, James, 12, and Maggie Mae, 9 - they eventually added three of their own - Maximus, 4, Madison, 3, and Christopher, 1. Chris still runs his crane business. Janice works part-time as a bookkeeper for Michael L. Kesselman, a dentist.
Last Christmas Eve, it was time for the Maddalo Family Gift Game. Everyone buys and wraps one gift, and everyone draws a number out of a bowl. But there was a conspiracy afoot to make sure Janice got Chris' gift.
From the big box, she pulled out a bottle of champagne, two glasses and grapes - plus a carrot. Chris had put a ring on it. He knelt in front of her and popped the question in front of the family.
It was so them
Chris and Janice were married at Philadelphia's Knowlton Mansion by Maria Odilia Romeau from Journeys of the Heart. A reception for 113 followed, and the whole event was all about family.
Janice's daughter Katlin was a bridesmaid, and Maggie Mae was flower girl. Janice's father, Bill, died in 2001. Her stepfather, also named Bill, walked her down the aisle.
Chris' brother and business partner, Jim, was his best man, and his nephew, 8-year-old Little Jimmy, was ring bearer. Nephew Matt, 20, was a groomsman.
Chris' mother, Delores, passed away last year. Instead of a mother-son dance, Chris had a brother-sisters dance - he danced with each of his seven sisters, oldest to youngest: Valerie, Bette, Jackie, Cookie, Barbara, Susan, Diane.
After each sister's turn, nephew Christopher handed them a rose and a card.
This didn't happen at rehearsal
Near the end of the reception, Chris took the microphone from the DJ. He told the guests that throughout the day, he had honored his wife, his sisters, his children and his mom, but there was one more person he really needed to acknowledge: "My beautiful mother-in-law." With that, Sonny Averona Jr. began singing Frank Sinatra's Summer Wind, and Chris whirled Janice Morche around the floor.
Awestruck
Chris wrote his own vows. He's a guy with a tough exterior, Janice said. But there was a lump in his throat and tears in his bride's eyes when he read the last line: "I do not think of you as my destiny or my soul mate; I think of you as the greatest gift of all, my true love."
Discretionary spending
A deal: The wedding dress. Janice accompanied her daughter to look for a prom gown, and off to the side, she saw a wedding dress. "It was the first and only one I tried on," she said. Cost: $238.10.
The splurge: A videographer. Chris always brings a video camera everywhere the family goes, but they were going to do without on their wedding day. At the last minute, Janice talked him into it.
The getaway
A weekend at the Shore - Atlantic City and Anglesea, N.J.
BEHIND THE SCENES
Officiant
Maria Odilia Romeu of Journeys of the Heart, Hollywood, Pa.
Venue
Knowlton Mansion, Philadelphia
Catering
Conroy Catering, Philadelphia
Photography
Lisa Martino DiSantis of Photogirl Designs, Newtown Square
Videographer
Scott Gifford Studios, Huntington Valley
Music
DJ Bob Price, Chalfont
Dress
Aidan Mattox
Invitations
Irma Brookstein at Les Femmes, Huntingdon Valley