Love On The Ferry: Bride-To-Be Says 'Yes' After Magical Proposal

SAG HARBOR, NY — For hundreds of passengers who drive onto the South Ferry, heading to and fro from Sag Harbor to Shelter Island, the trip is magical, kissed by dazzling sunsets and breathtaking views.

But for one East End couple, it was the voyage of a lifetime as they sailed off into their very own happily ever after — when he popped the question and the joyful bride-to-be said "yes."

Jackie Aldrich, 28, and her boyfriend of almost four years, Ian Kanarvogal, 31, who live on Shelter Island, said they were set up on a date by his students.

The teens were members of a club volleyball team, Eastport's Long Island Fury, that Aldrich coached; Kanarvogal, who used to teach at Shelter Island High School and is now the physical education teacher at Oysterponds Elementary School, had been their teacher.

The kids, Aldrich said, were matchmakers.

"They had told me about Ian and said we should meet. We went out on a blind date," she said.

And the South Ferry was front and center in their romance from the start.

When he asked her out, Kanarvogal told her to walk on to the ferry and he'd meet her on the Shelter Island side, she said.

"He picked me up for the first time, and it was really cute, and I thought he was really cute," she said. The pair went to dinner and then to the beach before he brought her back to the ferry for the ride home.

Sept. 12 of this year will mark four years since that momentous and star-kissed first date, she said.

And from the beginning, she was certain she'd found The One.

"I knew on our third date," she said. "I felt very comfortable with him from the beginning. He was always goofy, making jokes that he knew weren't funny, and I knew weren't funny — but at the same time, because we were together, they were really funny. He made me laugh, made me giggle, and I'm not a giggler."

The two share a deep love for family and kids.

"He works with in a school, and I work with kids" — Aldrich works for Human and Growth and Understanding Seminars, or HUGS — "and both of our jobs focus on the wellness of kids, so we have the same interests," she said.

Both also share an avid interest in sports, with Kanarvogal playing soccer in college and Aldrich having college volleyball memories.

"We have a lot in common. It just felt really right when I was with him," she said.

The lovebirds enjoy "date nights" with just the two of them, going to their favorite restaurants and heading to the same tables each time.

"I have a lot of friends in very serious relationships; we have a really good core group of friends that we enjoy spending time with," Aldrich added.

The couple also enjoys going to the gym and the beach, spending summer days on the boat, and taking long walks with their dogs Penelope and Breezy.

"Everything we do together is so right," Aldrich said.

The day when her future unfolded began like any other. The couple had appetizers and drinks with his sister Hope and her fiance at Lulu's in Sag Harbor.

"Then we had to go back to the ferry because apparently, we were going to have dinner with his parents — that was his cover story," Aldrich said.

When they got to the dock, Aldrich noticed that both ferries were facing in the same direction, not something that normally occurs, but she didn't say anything.

Next, they boarded the ferry. "There's always a beautiful sunset on the ferry, gorgeous and red, always so pretty. That night, it was beautiful but not particularly amazing," Aldrich said. "But Hope said, 'Oh, that sunset's so nice. Let's get out and all take a picture.' I thought, 'It's not such a great sunset, but I'll do whatever you want,'" Aldrich laughed.

Then, suddenly, everyone disappeared and Aldrich was alone with the love of her life — on the very same ferry where they'd met for the first time on their blind date.

"He said, 'Ever since I saw you on the ferry, I thought you were so beautiful. . .I knew you were special.'"

Aldrich turned around and Kanarvogal dropped to one knee and proposed. "He told me how much he loved me, and wanted to be with me forever," she said, adding that she'd begun to cry with joy.

And then, she added, "I said 'yes.'"

At the same moment, Adrich said she heard a scream from around the corner and then, saw one of her best friends, Corynna, running toward her.

"As soon as I heard her, I screamed, and then I saw everyone else." The entire ferry, Aldrich said, was filled with the couple's best friends, family members, and even her dog.

"I ran to give her a hug and I realized I didn't even have the ring on my finger yet," she said, laughing. "I said, 'Wait a sec,' and ran back and gave Ian a kiss. Then I saw my parents, who'd brought my dog. Everyone was giving Ian high fives and hand shakes and I gave every single person a hug."

Not only her best friends from high school, including Corynna, Julia and Alexa, were there, but also a close friend, Michael, who now lives in Orlando but flew to the East End for the proposal.

"Ian told me he wanted to make sure everyone I loved was there," she said.

And he'd included family from the beginning: He asked her dad for her hand in marriage while the pair were golfing together. "He picked the most beautiful hole overlooking the water," Aldrich said. "And my dad's reaction was, 'No way!' as if he couldn't believe it. But Ian thought he was saying 'no' for a second," Aldrich said, laughing.

After the proposal, the whole group, she said, went back to her parents' house for a night touched by magic.

The proposal, Aldrich said, is one that's pressed forever into the memory book of her heart.

"He is not a planner, but he put a lot of work into this, and our friends helped. It was a team effort," she said.

The night took orchestration to unfold smoothly; the ferry captain and a ferry employee who's a former student worked to ensure everyone onboard had gotten the ferry on Shelter Island and stayed hidden until the big reveal.

Nicholas Morehead, ferry captain of the South Ferry, was proud to be a part of the proposal: "It felt great to be a part of something so special as that particular moment for those two. Knowing that they will be able to look back on the start of their lives together in a certain sense and have South Ferry be a part of that is truly special to us. We are honored and touched that they asked us to be with them at that moment."

The friends and family who surrounded the couple fill their days with love, sharing weddings and so much joy. "We have such a good life together," she said.

The couple plans to be married on May 4, 2019 at the Peconic Bay Yacht Club in S0uthold — perfect, because it faces Shelter Island, she said.

Describing her proposal, Aldrich's voice is suffused with love. "I knew I wanted to be with him for the rest of my life. He could literally have put a ring in a shoebox and said, 'Will you marry me?' But he went through all this effort."

And the reason, Aldrich said, is because her fiance knows how much photos and special, forever moments mean to his future bride.

"I want to have memories, do things that are pronounced in my mind," she said. "When we get older I want to be able to tell my kids. And he made this a memory we won't ever forget."

Patch courtesy photos.