On the night of the 2016 presidential election, Celeste Hinchey Wise and Kate Hinchey Wise were in different parts of the country but stayed in communication throughout the night via text. Celeste was in Colorado entertaining friends at an election party while Kate was in New York City at the Javitz Center, where Hillary Clinton would have delivered her victory speech.
The couple, who met at Temple University in 2010, were already planning to move to Amsterdam together and talked about marriage prior to the election. After the results came in, the women knew they should move fast.
“I got a text message that Hillary Clinton had called Donald Trump to concede and I immediately asked Celeste to marry me, because I knew that if we were going to go to Amsterdam, there were not any State Department protections that we were going to be granted if she was just my girlfriend,” Kate said.
Celeste said the text was surprising but it was where both of their hearts already were.
“Even though it wasn’t a typical way to ask, it was still so full of love and I can feel the love coming across more than the fear,” Celeste said. “That was what we wanted to focus on. That despite everything going on that night, we wanted to focus on each other, our love and creating something beautiful out of that.”
The two planned a small elopement ceremony for Jan. 2, before Trump’s inauguration. Kate asked Amanda Swiger of Swiger Photography to be a witness but Swiger suggested the day should be “beautiful.” Her friend eventually planned a styled shoot for the day of the ceremony.
Eventually, Kate and Celeste had all aspects of the ceremony — which was themed red, white and blue — donated to them free of charge, from the brides’ dresses to the venue. The donations included photos from Swiger Photography, Jessa Rachael Photography and Amanda Walker; venue space from Studio 239; Celeste’s gown from Bella Bridesmaids; Kate’s gown from Ashe B. & Co., by Olia Zavozina; flowers from Bloomsbury Floral Design; rentals, furniture and detailing from Modern Relics Rentals; makeup by Elegance Artistry; and hair by Courtney Thornton.
“It was a blessing that I will never be able to repay those vendors for,” Kate said. “That team came together and made this special, beautiful day that we got to celebrate with 25 of our friends and family.”
Celeste said she and Kate never expected to have a ceremony this “elaborate and beautiful.”
“Amanda and her team seriously pulled off a miracle for us in offering all of this,” Celeste said. “She taught me that kindness can extend so much further than the small social circles that you have and that complete strangers can go above and beyond, make you feel really special and give you an experience that you’ll always remember. And for that, I am forever thankful.”
The couple has spent their first eight months of married life with Kate in West Philadelphia and Celeste in Los Angeles. They will move to Amsterdam Aug. 15, where the two women will pursue master’s degrees at separate universities. They have been keeping the romance alive by using Facetime and writing letters.
Kate said Celeste believes in her hopes and dreams, adding she feels lucky to have her.
“The moment we were holding hands and about to be married, she was the most serene and beautiful I have ever seen her,” Kate said. “I just couldn’t stop sobbing because she was mine. She was finally mine after seven long, long years. She was choosing me forever.”
Celeste called her wife, to whom she refers as “Katie,” her “biggest advocate.”
“[She] believes in me often before I believe in myself,” Celeste said. “Originally, we were just going to go to Amsterdam for her grad-school program but she was the one who actually encouraged me to apply. Katie helped me get a grad-school application in at the last minute [and] get into an awesome grad program in Amsterdam as well, and has helped me every step of the way in getting me up to speed because she has been planning this for a long time.”
Celeste and Kate plan to have a wedding ceremony May 30, 2020, where they will renew their vows in front of their friends and family.