William Taylor Bulloch and Rafael Torres went on their first date to Urban Wetlands at Greenwood Park.
“It was supposed to be just a lunch date and it turned into a whole afternoon thing,” Taylor says.
“I remember thinking at the end of our first date, I could so marry this guy,” Rafael says. “Then after two years of talking and dating long distance, I was going back to New York after a long holiday visit together and I knew this is the one I wanted to keep.”
Rafael adds, “My job was in New York City, of all places, with thousands of gay men and I wasn’t interested in any of them.” Taylor laughs.
Taylor is General Manager at Stonewall Bar in Orlando, where he moved from Tallahassee. Rafael is a philanthropist and moved back to Orlando, where the couple now lives together.
“I knew I was going to ask him [to marry me] at the Red Rooster in Harlem,” Taylor says. “We were talking about moving forward and how we were going to go about things as we had been dating long distance for three years. I just was talking about whether I was going to end up moving to New York or he was going to move down here, and I said to him, ‘For when we get married … you are going to marry me, right?’ and he said ‘of course,’ then all of a sudden he went, ‘Wait a minute, did you just ask me to marry you?’”
“I was like, ‘Back up! Wait, repeat that?!’” Rafael says. “Then he did the formal ask, ‘Will you marry me?’, and then I said yes. The waiter came by and asked us the status. She high-fived us and brought us champagne on the house. It was very sweet that she was in on it, too.”
Taylor and Rafael married two years from the date of their engagement. They shared it was an outdoor wedding ceremony at the same place as their first date. The ceremony was very casual with just their immediate families and a few very close friends. They wrote their own vows.
“I thought it was special that we came back to the location of our first date five years ago,” Rafael says. “Having our families and loved ones brought together in one place as witnesses made it even more meaningful.”
“Lots of happy tears,” Taylor shares.
The ceremony was followed by casual drinks at Stonewall and soul food at Chef Eddies Restaurant. The couple says that there was one touch in particular that made the day even more amazing.
“Rafael made our rings with his own hands,” Taylor shares.
“I have an arts background. I always wanted to design and make our own rings. I forged them two days before the wedding. Talk about last minute,” Rafael laughs.
Engagement date: Jan. 11, 2017
Wedding date: Jan. 11, 2019
Venue: Urban Wetlands at Greenwood Park
Colors: Black & White
Wedding Song/Artist: “This Must Be the Place” by Talking Heads
Officiant: Colin Moore
Photographer: Meche Ausina Photography
