The reason Spc. Shane Adriano and Pfc. Tristian Resz chose the Greene County Courthouse? They wanted a venue that was small and intimate for their February 11th wedding.
The Internet, however, is neither.
While the ceremony was attended by only the couple, a few friends and a judge, their “first married kiss” photo — which they shared on Facebook — turned the ceremony into a bona fide worldwide event.
Since The American Military Partner Association posted the photo — only a few hours after the wedding — the post had already been shared 800 times as of Monday morning, garnering over 4,400 likes and 215 jubilant comments.
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The photo was shared by statewide LGBTQ advocacy group PROMO the day after the wedding, gathering another 1,400 likes and tons of comments.
Then GLO Center shared the photo. Another 125 likes. Lots of comments.
Talking to News-Leader, Adriano said they’ve lost track of how many times the photo has been shared.
“It just keeps getting reshared,” he said. “We had a little bit of negative comments on there, but I wasn’t even expecting that many people to like it and share it over and over again.”
Many of the positive comments, he said, came from veterans and military personnel:
“The majority of people who were commenting and sharing, they were doing it because they are proud of how far the military has come. “Up until 2011 it was illegal to be openly gay in the military. Now, it’s legal for us to be married.”
Adriano, who’s stationed at Ft. Leonard Wood, has been in the Army for three years.
Resz has been in the reserves for a year and a half.
The couple plans to move into a home in Waynesville.
Last fall, Adriano proposed to Resz; just a couple of months after they first met.
“I know a lot of people don’t believe in love at first site, but sometimes you just know,” Adriano said. “That is how I felt with me and him.”
Resz said yes right away:
“I realized this is someone I want in my life forever,” he said. “This is the one person I can’t live without.”
Judge David Jones performed the ceremony.
h/t: USA Today
