Becky and Danny: A Bethesda Love Story
It was a good old-fashioned Colorado snowstorm, and Danny was nowhere to be found. But that came as no surprise to Colleen. Sure, it was a shock, especially since blizzard-force winds were barreling down on Colorado Springs, but it was no surprise. Colleen knew where to look. She always did. Danny was on his way to a house a few miles down the road and nothing was going to stop him from getting where he knew he needed to be. He needed to be with Becky, and everyone knew it. And sure enough, there he was—walking down the road, knee-deep in snow without a coat, determined to be with the love of his life.
This scene played out again and again, until finally, their love was too strong for anyone to ignore.
A unique connection severed by a pandemic
Danny and Becky met several years ago at their church in Colorado Springs, and from the beginning it was clear the two had a special connection. From day one, they were inseparable.
“I mean, the phone calls were every day,” Colleen, Becky’s sister, recalls. “And from there they started saying they wanted to get married.”
Unfortunately, like so many other good things disrupted by the pandemic, COVID-19 forced Danny and Becky to separate. To complicate things further, Becky experienced a health issue at the beginning of the pandemic that caused her to forget many of the people around her. But she never forgot Danny. She missed Danny.
“We lost track of Danny,” Colleen remembers. His address had changed when he switched living situations with his provider, a change that Colleen and Becky’s Bethesda Program Manager were not aware of.
Colleen and Becky’s team at Bethesda searched relentlessly for Danny. They knew the connection between the two was profound, and they refused to accept this was the end for the couple.
A traveling Christmas Card
By November of 2020, Becky and Danny had been separated for over 10 months. But Danny was always on Becky’s mind, so she decided to write him a Christmas card, even though she had no idea where to send it.
But then, a Christmas miracle.
“It all happened in a couple hours,” says Erin Krause, Program Manager for Bethesda, “It was kind of amazing.”
The chain of custody of the Christmas card goes something like this:
Becky writes her letter to Danny and gives it to Colleen, who passes it to Erin at Bethesda. Erin immediately scans the card and sends it to Becky’s case manager. From there—we still don’t know how—the letter makes its way to Danny’s case manager, who forwards it to Danny’s agency.
And then came Danny’s phone call. After nearly a year of no contact, Becky and Danny were reunited.
“They didn’t miss a beat,” says Colleen. “They’ve only gotten stronger and stronger.”
And since November 28, Becky and Danny have been with each other every single day thanks to the dedication of Colleen, Becky’s dedicated sister.
Happily ever after does exist
On August 7, 2021, Becky and Danny exchanged vows in a beautiful wedding ceremony surrounded by family and friends. The event was a personal affair, held at the home of the couple’s day program manager, which boasts a beautiful backyard with a gorgeous view. The groom looked dapper and excited in a blue suede suit, while the bride was radiant in a flowing white dress, flowers in her hair and cowboy boots on her feet. It was a scene both exhilarating and serene, impossible yet inevitable. But above all else, it was a scene filled with love.
And not just Becky and Danny’s love. Because it was also the love Colleen and her husband, Chris, showered over the happy couple (including a surprise honeymoon to Disneyland). And it was the love Bethesda staff showed for Becky and Danny—the unwavering dedication, boundless compassion, and above-and-beyond support. (Believe it or not, wedding planning wasn’t in the job description.)
We are endlessly proud of and grateful for our staff who consistently go out of their way for the people we serve. And we wish Becky and Danny all the joy in the world. Congrats, you two.
