Wedding: Rachel McLaughlin and Eric Most ‘hit it off, just immediately’

Rachel McLaughlin and Eric Most

Jan. 25, 2020, in Philadelphia

As soon as he saw the pretty woman with long, brown hair, Eric knew he had to say hello. He crossed the room full of Drexel University students, gathered for a spring 2013 party hosted by Eric’s roommate, Shane, and Shane’s girlfriend, Delancy, and met Rachel.

“We hit it off, just immediately,” said Eric, a computer science major from Midlothian, Va.

“He was a really good listener — one of the few people I’ve ever met who listens as much as he talks,” said Rachel, who grew up in Holmdel, Monmouth County, N.J., and was in Drexel’s nursing program, where she met Delancy. “When he did talk, he was so passionate about the things he’s interested in, and he was really funny.”

As they had the “getting-to-know-you” conversation, Rachel’s phone rang, and she took the call and talked for a minute or two before hanging up. “Who were you on the phone with?” Eric asked. “It’s my mom!” she said.

“Oh!” Eric said, a bit surprised. “Does she know you’re at a party?”

“Yeah,” Rachel said, wondering if he would think she was weird to be talking to her mother while partying with her friends.

“It was definitely a little bit weird,” Eric said. But not bad weird.

Despite the fun they had together, the night ended without the two exchanging contact information. Rachel woke up wishing they had, and her wish was soon granted by a text from Eric, who had asked Delancy for her number.

Next came movie nights and other group outings and then, one night, it was just the two of them walking around campus, getting some food, filling in many of the blanks that remained. Two weeks later at Moshulu, they gave each other titles: Girlfriend. Boyfriend. But it was really just formalizing what had already happened, Rachel said. “It was always exclusive.”

“Her kindness and compassion, her thoughtfulness for others, are the big things I love about her,” Eric said. “She’s a very kind and giving person.”

For Rachel, same same.

“The first time I told him I loved him was when we visited his family. He was so kind and respectful to his parents and sister,” she remembered. She also enjoys the way Eric gets her to slow down and appreciate life, even though he is as driven as she is. “He supports me in everything I want to do. He always has my back. He’s very loyal. I knew for a long time he would be a really good husband.”

After graduating, they both stayed in Philadelphia, and in summer 2016, they moved to their Center City apartment.

Eric, who is now 26, is a software developer for Susquehanna International Group (SIG), in Bala Cynwyd. Rachel, now 27, is a pediatric oncology nurse at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

For the past 50 years or so, Eric’s family’s summers have centered on a small, rustic cabin on Little Eskutassis Pond in Maine. In July 2019, Rachel joined Eric and his parents, Christine and Doug, and his sister, Ramona, for the second week of his stay at what’s just about his favorite place on earth.

The two rowed out on the water one afternoon to cast lines. The lake was beautiful and the time together lovely, but the fish were not biting. As Rachel reeled in her last cast, Eric moved and made their small boat tilt. “What are you doing?” she asked.

He had knelt.

“I know we didn’t have the best fishing day today, but I feel like I caught something way better than a fish,” Eric said. “Will you marry me?”

Completely gobsmacked and utterly delighted, she said yes. And then she had a question for Eric: How did he pull this off in secret?

In part, with the help of her parents, Donna and Alan. A short while after receiving their blessing, Eric and Donna went to Donna’s favorite jeweler where she helped him pick out the perfect ring for Rachel.

The couple married in an interfaith ceremony at the Knowlton Mansion beneath a huppah built by Eric and Kyle, Rachel’s sister Victoria’s boyfriend. In the weeks prior, Rabbi Joysa Winter asked Rachel and Eric to separately send her their answers to questions about the other, then wove the words into a very personalized ceremony. “She told our love story to the guests in a way that it felt like vows to each other,” Rachel said. All ceremony songs were instrumental versions of themes from Broadway shows they’ve seen together.

The reception for 100 featured the Philly Keys pianists, plus a drummer, and guitarist. “They did a request-type show, and it was really fun,” Eric said. The couple launched the reception with a choreographed first dance to Queen’s “You’re My Best Friend.” They took lessons for a month, and, despite Rachel’s fears about her not-that-great-at-dancing feet, pulled it off splendidly.

“All I Ask of You” from Phantom of the Opera began to play, and Rachel, flanked by her parents, began walking down the aisle toward Eric. “I felt a lot of emotions all of a sudden,” he said. “I was just really happy, and feeling a lot of good things.”

Rachel loved the part of the ceremony that featured the words she and Eric had written about each other. “You tell someone you love them all of the time. It was nice to hear the explanation of exactly why they feel that way, and to relive the time when you are first going out with somebody and they are falling in love with you,” she said.

A bargain: The couple hired the Philly Keys for a bit more than a DJ, but significantly less than the least-expensive wedding band they found. “We definitely thought we were getting a big upgrade over a DJ, and I think it was a more enjoyable time for people than what it might have been if we had a standard band with a set list of pop hits,” said Eric.

The splurge: “We really wanted awesome photos, and when we were having our planning discussions, we agreed this was the one thing we didn’t want to compromise on,” Rachel said. They chose photographer Rebecca Barger solely because they love her work and said the cost was very reasonable for the quality and quantity of photographs received. The bride is also glad she treated the mothers and bridal party to professional hair and makeup.

Two weeks in Costa Rica, including beach time, long ziplines over a scenic river valley, and hikes in the rain forest that ended with soothing soaks at their hot springs resort, Tabacon.

Behind the scenes:

Officiant: Rabbi Joysa Winter.

Ceremony and reception: Knowlton Mansion, Philadelphia.

Food: Conroy Catering, Philadelphia.

Music: The Philly Keys, Philadelphia.

Photography: Rebecca Barger Photography, Jenkintown, Pa.

Flowers: Offshoots!, Philadelphia.

Bride’s attire: Designed by Maggie Sottero, purchased at Cinderella Bridals, Matawan, N.J. https://www.cinderellabridals.com/

Groom’s attire: Enzo Custom, Philadelphia.

Hair/Makeup: Taffeta and Hair & Makeup Design, Hammonton, N.J.

Transportation: Limo Today, Bensalem, Pa.

Dance Lessons: Moving Image Dance Academy, Philadelphia.