We are still planning on having the wedding in Chicago on May 15th. We also know that many of you will be required to travel to attend the wedding and we, of course, do not want anyone to put themselves at risk or travel if they feel uncomfortable doing so. The invitations are in the mail as of 3/16/20 and should be arriving soon. If you are not planning on attending the ceremony please let us know and RSVP as soon as you can so we can make arrangements regarding venue and catering. We feel that modern problems require modern solutions. We are planning on having a "Virtual Wedding" for the people who will not be able to make the trip and will Live Stream the ceremony on a platform that is to be determined. We absolutely do not want anyone to feel pressured into making the trip because the wedding is still happening on that date. The safety of our family and friends is important to us and if you have any questions regarding the wedding please contact us at: arengilbert@gmail.com

June 2016 is when this story starts. Aren was working in Schaumburg, Illinois and Samantha lived in Des Plaines. We met online and there was an immediate connection and we started hanging out everyday after work. Whether it was walking around Lake Park or exploring Lake Shore Drive and Downtown during the Blues Festival we knew that something special was growing between us. We started going to concerts every chance we had and our love for music, especially live music, helped grow our love for each other. The summer of 2016 seemed to go too fast and we made plans to see each other after I (Aren) had to go back down to Georgia. We both wanted very badly to keep the relationship going. And we did! We talked on the phone constantly and every month or so I would drive up to Chicago to visit Sam if only for a few hours. We put in all of the hard work to make sure each other was happy and taken care of. The day after Christmas 2016, We packed all of Sam's stuff into her Honda and drove down to Georgia where we have lived together since. Everyday since then has been a huge blessing and we are the happiest people when we are together and we are very glad that the long distance stuff didn't last too long. We are such a great team and we work hard together to accomplish our goals. We are slowly growing our family and are very excited with taking this next step and Getting Married! We look forward to this event and are very much looking forward to sharing this occasion with our Families and Close Friends. - Samantha and Aren

We will be posting scheduling, hotel information, and reception and wedding locations on this site. Keep checking back, we will have more information up soon!