Weddings: Hillary Rosenfeld & Chris Hastings

They had enjoyed talking shop at the public-media programmers and curators conference.

They delighted each other with broader conversations at dinner with a dozen other new conference friends. But it wasn't until Chris and Hillary were posing for a group photo on her last day at the November 2014 gathering that Chris realized he didn't want to say goodbye.

There was a film screening the next day. "You should stay," he said. Hillary felt the same spark Chris did but couldn't justify the big cost of changing her flight from San Diego back to Tucson, where she had lived since leaving Southampton, Bucks County, for college. She gave Chris her number, he gave her his, and the texts started flying before her plane did.

Chris returned to Boston, to his son, Miles, and to his work as a WGBH executive producer. He had lived there for more than a decade, but he grew up in Morton, near Springfield, Delaware County.

By text, by phone, by email, they shared their stories and listened carefully. Living nearly 3,000 miles apart meant they had to gauge potential before their first date, Hillary said. "You have to really want to spend time with this person when it won't just be a dinner, but spending five days together."

Chris's brother, Ryan, spent Christmas in Boston with Chris and Miles and noted his brother was still doing a lot of texting with the same woman he'd been talking to at Thanksgiving. "I spent a lot of time talking to him about what this new thing was," Chris said. The discussion made him confident.

"I don't have anything to do for New Year's, and I have a long weekend," he told Hillary during their next phone call. "I like Tucson. Maybe I should come there?"

After that weekend exploring the desert, eating nice dinners, talking a lot, neither doubted the growing feelings. Chris oversees content for World Channel, a national documentary channel at WGBH, a job that requires trips to film festivals around the country. Hillary bought plane tickets to meet him in those cities.

They also strategically planned their visits home, so she'd be in Southampton while he was in Chester, where most of his family lives.

Chris, who is now 42, knew Miles was ready to meet Hillary, 32, when he asked about her constantly. They first met through FaceTime, and they often talked about Hillary's dogs, Ralphy and Izzy. Miles, an elementary school student, met Hillary in person in winter 2015 for Chris' birthday weekend. The two collaborated on a cake that didn't rise and left Chris' kitchen a disaster. Best birthday ever.

"Hillary makes you happy just with the way she laughs," Chris said. "She comes into a room with a lot of energy. She is just as comfortable at Sundance in a room of celebrities as she is at home with the many women of my family at Easter. She knows how to make everybody feel comfortable."

"I think he's just an amazing, compassionate, and very passionate man," Hillary said of Chris. "He deeply loves his family, especially his son. Miles is an amazing child, and it's because of the love of his father, and the way he's learned to love from him."

Miles accompanied Chris to Tucson in July 2015. They and Hillary planned to drive to San Diego later that week, and Chris had a surprise planned for Hillary in the city where they'd met. He took his son to a Tucson Starbucks to fill him in.

"I want Hillary to come live with us," Chris said. Miles was totally cool with that idea.

"Also, I would like her to marry me," he added.

Miles thought it was a bit soon but said his dad had his support, so long as he took his proposal advice. "Dad, you've got to find the right place to do it," Miles said. "Why not the beach?"

Miles even wrote a script for Chris, in case he lost his words in a proposal panic.

The first beach they tried was covered in seaweed and not up to Miles' standards. They had a dinner reservation at the restaurant Chris, Hillary, and other conferencegoers had dined at when the couple first met, so the plan was to look for a better beach after they ate.

Miles took a photo of Chris and Hillary at their outdoor table, and just like the first time, posing with Hillary stirred up Chris' emotions. He pulled out the ring. "Hey, how about we get married?" he asked her.

"Yes," said Hillary.

"No, no!" said Miles. "This is not what we talked about."

"You might be the producer, but I'm the executive producer," Chris told him gently. Still, after dinner, the three headed toward another beach where Chris planned to repropose and Hillary to reaccept. Then Miles fell asleep in the car.

In summer 2015, Hillary landed her job at a start-up housed within WGBH that supports fund-raising efforts of PBS stations around the country. She and her pups joined Chris and Miles in Boston.

For a minute, the couple wanted a tiny wedding with immediate family only. But as they thought of people they would miss too much, they bumped their target first to 50 guests, and then to more than 100.

The skies cleared long enough for Journeys of the Heart's Linda Noonan to gather everyone outside at the riverside Pen Ryn Estate for a ceremony featuring details of the couple's love story.

"I was raised by my mom [Muriel] and my grandmother [Myrtice]," Chris said, "and I walked with both of them down the aisle."

Hillary was escorted by her mom and dad, Ellen and Howard. When they reached the front of the room, her parents and Chris' mom gave their blessing to the marriage.

The couple said vows to each other, and then Miles - who served as both best man and ring bearer. Chris and Hillary each put a hand on his back and promised together to create a home in which his health, happiness, and growth were all supported. Then Chris, Hillary, and Miles each put one foot on top of a cloth-covered glass and smashed it. "May you live together in love, joy, and peace longer than it would take to piece together the remnants and slivers of this shattered glass," their officiant said.

"The ceremony matched the life we're building, stitched together like a really beautiful quilt," Chris said.

The bride didn't walk down the aisle to Bill Wither's "Lovely Day" - she danced.

"This is why I love this woman," Chris thought then. "Every time I watch the video, I think, 'Yup, that's my girl.' "

"I was whooping and hollering and trying to get everyone else to dance with me," Hillary remembered. "My dad tried his best to dance down the aisle with two artificial hips. I was two-stepping, expressing my joy through dance."

Hillary, Chris, and Miles all danced in to the reception - Miles did a full 360-degree spin. "The family that dances together stays together," their DJ said.

A bargain: Some locations they considered would have charged extra for a Memorial Day wedding, but Pen Ryn gave the couple a $40-per-guest discount.

The splurge: The couple is so glad they upped their guest count.

Eight days in Kauai.

BEHIND THE SCENES

Officiant: Linda Noonan, Journeys of the Heart, Jenkintown.
Venue: Pen Ryn Estate, Bensalem.
Catering: Pen Ryn Estate.
Photography: FOCUS by Alessandro Romo.
Flowers: Petals Lane, Philadelphia.
Dress: David's Bridal, Springfield.
Music: DJ Laylo, New York.

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