When Syracuse natives Abby Grovine and CJ Ozimek entered a competition for a free wedding at the Great New York State Fair, they didn’t have high hopes of winning.

“We’ve never won anything before,” Grovine said.

Their luck changed when Grovine got a call from Dave Bullard, the Fair public relations and marketing manager, asking her if she and her fiancé could ice skate.

“I immediately knew we had won,” she said. “I was in such shock, I didn’t even know what to do. I kept saying to myself: How did we win, how did we get so lucky?”

The couple entered the contest for a free wedding on ice through Facebook, and the event was designed to show off the Fair’s new exhibition center. To enter, Grovine commented on the post with the couple’s love story, along with a picture of herself and Ozimek.

The couple was chosen randomly from nearly 200 entries. The only thing the Fair asks of the two, other than that they present a marriage license, is they skate to the altar. Their guests do not have to skate and can instead stand or sit on rugs on the ice.

Ozimek, 27, and Grovine, 29, both worked on the replenishment team at Michaels craft store in the early mornings. The first day Grovine started, in 2014, she noticed a bulletin board with September birthdays posted. Someone named CJ had the same birthday as her — Sept. 1.

When the two were scheduled for the same shift, Grovine met Ozimek for the first time.

“I said to him, ‘So you’re CJ, we actually share the same birthday!’ He thought that was pretty cool too,” she said. “I was new so he helped me out, we ended up getting to know each other pretty well.”

Now, they’ll have something else to celebrate on Sept. 1 — their wedding day.

At about 2 p.m. Saturday, Grovine and Ozimek will get married on a temporary ice rink in the Fair’s new expo center. The Fair will provide an officiant and photographer, as well as a catered reception for up to 50 guests. Once the two are married, they will be escorted by limo to the Jefferson Clinton Hotel where they will stay for the night.

In addition to the wedding on ice and a package from del Lago Resort and Casino that includes a stay at their resort, Grovine and Ozimek will also receive lifetime passes to the Fair.

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Grovine said the two always go to the Fair to celebrate their shared birthday. She thinks it’s only fitting that they will be married there as well.

“We both love the idea of having our birthdays and anniversary on the same day,” she said. “CJ was even more excited because this way it will be impossible for him to forget our anniversary!”

Ozimek proposed to Grovine on July 5, 2016 on a beach in Atlantic City, New Jersey. He was gathering shells for a project she was going to work on when they got back home. When Grovine sat next to him, he handed her a shell full of sand and said he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. Then Ozimek asked her to marry him.

“He has always been by my side, supported me in everything, encouraged me to open my Etsy shop, and is just always there when I need him,” she said. “We both support each other equally, and there’s not one thing either of us wouldn’t do for the other.”[Text Wrapping Break]

Grovine was able to buy a dress for the big day and pull together a guest list in about two days. She even sent out invitations to make the affair a bit more formal.

“I wanted at least part of the wedding to be traditional,” she said. [Text Wrapping Break][Text Wrapping Break]Though they appreciate the free one-night stay at the hotel, the couple definitely would like to go on a longer honeymoon to the Bahamas sometime in the future.

The two can’t wait to spend the day with friends and family to celebrate both of their birthdays and now, their wedding day, Grovine said.

“The entire wedding will be an unforgettable blast,” she said “and we are over the moon excited to see how it will go.”

Published on August 29, 2018 at 10:28 pm