Cpl Miller
10-26-2009, 06:31 PM
Danica Sturgis and Gary Slater became engaged on Labor Day last year and they exchanged wedding vows Saturday, with family and friends gathered in Folsom for the Memorial Day weekend.
That way, we'll never forget the dates," Slater said, noting that May 23 also is the anniversary of his promotion to the rank of captain in the Marine Corps.
Those associations may prove helpful reminders in years to come for this active military couple. Following a honeymoon in Colorado, the two will part company and return to posts on opposite coasts.
Sturgis, 23, is a lieutenant, assigned to Marine intelligence at Camp Pendleton in Southern California. Slater, 28, from Eden Prairie, Minn., is an armor officer and tank commander, stationed in Quantico, Va.
They are representative of many in today's military who meet and marry, knowing that they will soon be serving and living apart.
"We know quite a few married couples who are both on active duty," Sturgis said in an interview before the nuptials.
We would rather be married and living apart than not be married," said Slater. "We're blessed to be able to take two weeks of leave."
Sturgis is the daughter of Folsom residents John and Lisa Sturgis. Her father was also a Marine and she was born at Camp Pendleton.
"I've come full circle," she noted.
Sturgis is also the eldest of six children. Her brother Andrew, 20, served with the Marines in Iraq and is now in the Marine Reserves.
The pull of the Marines is strong in this family. Danica Sturgis earned a degree in international relations at the University of California, Davis. She was pondering what to do after graduation when she saw a newspaper photo of incidents in Lebanon that led her to consider military opportunities.
She joined the Marines two years ago and expects eventually to be deployed overseas.
Slater, an only child, is the first member of his family to serve in the Marine Corps, but joining, he said, "never was much of a decision. I wanted to do it with the best … I always wanted to serve and lead men in combat."
Since joining six years ago, he has completed two tours in Iraq and was wounded during the first.
"It was a sniper injury," he said. "I got a little ricochet on the arm."
The couple met at a Baptist church in Quantico.
"I would say a plurality of women in the Marines end up marrying a Marine," Slater said.
He and Sturgis agreed it was important to have a spouse who "speaks the same language."
"It's good we both understand the culture of the Marine Corps," Slater said.
They expect to see each other about once a month, taking turns flying from one coast to the other. They typically take commercial rather than military flights because of the more direct routes, Sturgis said.
Folks in Folsom's historic district early Saturday evening had an opportunity to witness a bit of the couple's celebration.
Following the 5 p.m. wedding at Landmark Baptist Church on Figueroa Street, the approximately 80-member wedding party was to walk down Riley and Sutter streets en route to the reception at the Lake Natoma Inn.
The walk was a matter of convenience, Sturgis said, saving guests the need to move their cars. But with groomsmen, fellow Marines, in dress uniform, they figured they'd treat the community to a fitting Memorial Day weekend procession.
Despite her dedication to the Marine Corps, however, the bride opted for a traditional wedding gown.
That way, we'll never forget the dates," Slater said, noting that May 23 also is the anniversary of his promotion to the rank of captain in the Marine Corps.
Those associations may prove helpful reminders in years to come for this active military couple. Following a honeymoon in Colorado, the two will part company and return to posts on opposite coasts.
Sturgis, 23, is a lieutenant, assigned to Marine intelligence at Camp Pendleton in Southern California. Slater, 28, from Eden Prairie, Minn., is an armor officer and tank commander, stationed in Quantico, Va.
They are representative of many in today's military who meet and marry, knowing that they will soon be serving and living apart.
"We know quite a few married couples who are both on active duty," Sturgis said in an interview before the nuptials.
We would rather be married and living apart than not be married," said Slater. "We're blessed to be able to take two weeks of leave."
Sturgis is the daughter of Folsom residents John and Lisa Sturgis. Her father was also a Marine and she was born at Camp Pendleton.
"I've come full circle," she noted.
Sturgis is also the eldest of six children. Her brother Andrew, 20, served with the Marines in Iraq and is now in the Marine Reserves.
The pull of the Marines is strong in this family. Danica Sturgis earned a degree in international relations at the University of California, Davis. She was pondering what to do after graduation when she saw a newspaper photo of incidents in Lebanon that led her to consider military opportunities.
She joined the Marines two years ago and expects eventually to be deployed overseas.
Slater, an only child, is the first member of his family to serve in the Marine Corps, but joining, he said, "never was much of a decision. I wanted to do it with the best … I always wanted to serve and lead men in combat."
Since joining six years ago, he has completed two tours in Iraq and was wounded during the first.
"It was a sniper injury," he said. "I got a little ricochet on the arm."
The couple met at a Baptist church in Quantico.
"I would say a plurality of women in the Marines end up marrying a Marine," Slater said.
He and Sturgis agreed it was important to have a spouse who "speaks the same language."
"It's good we both understand the culture of the Marine Corps," Slater said.
They expect to see each other about once a month, taking turns flying from one coast to the other. They typically take commercial rather than military flights because of the more direct routes, Sturgis said.
Folks in Folsom's historic district early Saturday evening had an opportunity to witness a bit of the couple's celebration.
Following the 5 p.m. wedding at Landmark Baptist Church on Figueroa Street, the approximately 80-member wedding party was to walk down Riley and Sutter streets en route to the reception at the Lake Natoma Inn.
The walk was a matter of convenience, Sturgis said, saving guests the need to move their cars. But with groomsmen, fellow Marines, in dress uniform, they figured they'd treat the community to a fitting Memorial Day weekend procession.
Despite her dedication to the Marine Corps, however, the bride opted for a traditional wedding gown.