Our Couples: The Fall 2022 Edition

Jayne Schaecher & Heidi Schrieber

It seems appropriate that we feature Heidi Schrieber, one of this year’s Lavender Magazine Community Award Winners, and her wife Jayne Schaecher, on our cover of this issue. They are a dynamic couple who have done so much for our community over the years.

Let’s read their love story…

How did you both meet?

“We met in 1985 in Lincoln, NE.  Heidi was friends with Jayne’s sister, Carol, and she said we should meet. We dated for a bit, nothing serious, and then Heidi took a job in Kansas City.  Heidi moved to Minneapolis in 1993. Never heard or saw each other again until we ran into each other in 2001 at the bar, Boom!

“We did a 5 minute catch up, as Jayne had moved here to live in 1996. We did not see each other again until 2009 when a mutual friend of ours found out we knew each other and played matchmaker. This time it worked, and we got married in 2015!”

Talk about the highlights of your life journey together.

“We both have very similar likes. We travel and have been around the U.S. and several European countries. Being active is also one of our favorites; golfing, riding bikes, taking our labradoodles with us on adventures.  It is so nice to have someone who ‘gets you’ to share your life with.”

Talk about your present and future as a couple.

“At this point we are putting a lot of energy into our new house and planning a big vacation to seven European countries.  We are very cognizant of staying healthy and continuing to enjoy friends and family.  

“We both agree that being married is the best!”

Mark Waldorf & Kyle Walsh

Waldorf is not just the President of Outloud Promotions. He is also a happily married man. Now, we’ll let Waldorf talk about the love of his life..

How did you two meet?

“We ‘officially’ met at the Quorum holiday party in 2014; that’s where we had our first one-on-one conversation and ended up exchanging phone numbers.  Prior to that we were acquaintances who saw each other at social events.  Our first date was two days after the holiday party, and we have been together ever since.”

Talk about highlights of your life journey so far.

“We were together for almost seven years before our wedding, and it’s been just over one year since our wedding, so a lot of the highlights occurred before we got married.  Those include falling in love, meeting each other’s families, moving in together, renovating our home, traveling to amazing destinations, and generally being there for each other through the highs and lows of life.  The highlight of highlights was committing to each other through marriage and celebrating with our loved ones.  It was perfect.”

“If there is one word we would use to describe our wedding, it would be “magical!”  The Bakken Museum was the perfect venue for our outdoor wedding, and we lucked out with great weather.  Our ceremony was held in the beautiful gardens with a string quartet, and our reception and dance were held on the grass rooftop overlooking Lake Bde Maka Ska with an 8-piece band.  With its gorgeous architecture, majestic gardens, and hands-on scientific experiments and displays available to our guests, the Bakken Museum is a venue that is so unique and charming that our guests still talk about it one year later.  But the most important part of our wedding day was that we were able to celebrate our commitment with our family and friends, and even had a special appearance from our dog, Gille.  It was a day we will remember and cherish forever.”

Talk about your present and future as a couple.

“At present we are enjoying family life with our Golden Retriever, Gillie, and planning our next adventure – our honeymoon.  Our future ideally includes lots of travel, new experiences, and continuing to escape the Minnesota winters.  Being there for our family, friends, and each other makes our present and future very exciting.”

Josh Kelly & Mike Welton

Welton is one of our more renowned artists in our community. His work reflects the great scenes in and around the Twin Cities – some of which can be seen around the area. Let’s see how Welton and Kelly have found love together.

How did you two meet?

“We met at a “Boys and Brews” meeting. Even though Josh noticed Mike right away from through the window of LynLake Brewery, Mike did not see him come in, but he sat down right next to Mike and just started talking. We never stopped talking and then went on a date to a distillery later that night. We kept talking and keeping each other company during the pandemic.”

Talk about highlights of your life journey so far.

“Well, we have been though major life changes in the 2 and a half years together. 

“For us the highlight has been meeting Josh’s family in New Mexico and feeling a part of his family. Josh took Mike on a tour of rural New Mexico on a show and tell of how it was growing up gay in secluded, conservative environment. Another highlight was Mike being a supportive partner when Josh’s mother died. That experience grew our understanding of each other.”

Talk about your present and future as a couple.

“We both want similar things out of life. We workout three times a week. Josh has taught Mike about food/drink and cooking. We have never owned a home with someone, and we are learning about that together. The other weekend in Washburn, Wisconsin while at a gallery, Josh and Mike talked about how the gallery was being run and the things we would love to bring to a co-ownership of a similar community gallery. Helping each other with our art. Josh with woodworking and Mike selling paintings. Mike has a more business sense that has helped and has encouraged Josh’s woodworking.”

Richard & Charles Herod

Everyone knows Richard Herod III as the face and the driving force of White Bear Mitsubishi and The Bear Lot. You can now add “happy married man” to everything he has accomplished. Let’s meet him and his husband, Charles!

How did you and Charles met?

“Charles and I met online.  When I saw his smile and then figured out he was also into cars, I had to get to know him, even if it just meant that we were to be friends.  Given that he lived in the bay area of California, it required that we get to know each other a bit before we finally met in person.

“We agreed to meet about 45 days later in Phoenix, Arizona.  Our first date was attending the Barrett Jackson Auto Auction, which was a must for two car enthusiasts.   We went on a handful of dates over the course of a few days and even hiked Camelback Mountain together.

“Given that we met right before the heart of the pandemic in early 2020, traveling back and forth to see each other proved problematic, but we made it work. 

“We were engaged later in 2020 and moved Charles to Minnesota where he now works for the family business buying used cars for resale at both the dealerships Richard owns (White Bear Mitsubishi and The Bear Lot Motorsports – Mounds View.)”

Tell us about the wedding? How did it all come together?

“It was almost impossible to try to get married in 2021 during the pandemic as many wedding venues had shuttered.  We postponed our wedding ambitions until 2022 and we both thought that getting married on Camelback Mountain in Paradise Valley, Arizona (outside Phoenix) would be the perfect place for us to say “I dos”.   We agreed to have a destination wedding and then throw a “Herod Homecoming” wedding dance after our return from our wedding.

“Getting married at the Sanctuary was absolutely perfect.  We could not have asked for a more perfect wedding.  We were married on Palm Sunday, April 10, 2022 in front of our family, friends and those we consider an integral part of our village.”

Talk about your present and future as a couple.

“We have a lovely family with our two French bulldogs, Bruiser and Reece and look forward to growing this family. The two things that brought us together instantly (other than our mutual love of cars) was faith and family.   Charles and I plan to start growing our family in 2023. We are still trying to figure out how many kids our target is – but our goal is to start with 2 kids and grow from there. We believe that our path includes surrogacy and adoption and look forward to being parents together.”