Her Story

 Ashley was born and raised in Crescent Township, PA. She attended St. James School from preschool to 8th Grade, then Moon Area High School.

 

Ashley did gymnastics from the time she was 4 years old through her senior year of high school. She attended multiple clubs and gyms over the years, but the last two years only did gymnastics with her high school team, graduating in 2004.

 

After high school Ashley joined the Leetsdale VFD from 2005-2007. In 2006 she earned her EMT-B Certification. In 2007, she left the fire department to attend the Police Academy. After the police academy she continued on to graduate with two Associate Degrees in 2011. One in Police Technology and the other in Criminal Justice. Ashley has not returned to the Fire Department but still works as a police officer in Pa.

 

In 2012 while attending the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix, an annual tradition for the last 15 years. Ashley met Dave, aka. Butch. (Although if you hear his side of the story they met a few years earlier but she always gave him a hard time while he was getting taking his cars through Techincal Inspection.)

 

It started with a friendly good bye on Sunday early evening. A HUG as he was pulling out of the Paddock in the Toyota Tacoma, towing the open trailer, with the entire bed of the truck packed and the passenger seat filled with race gear. A few days later, their first date, in Robinson, Pa at Ichibahn Steakhouse. The romance blossomed from there!

 

In June of 2014 while attending the biggest vintage race in the country at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, he proposed! Dave had an oppertunity to race and made it a point to tell Ashley that he wanted to get his picture taken "Kissing the Bricks", if all possible. On Saturday night a terrible storm passed through the area, as a result on Sunday morning the races were running late because the track had to be dried off. Ashley thought that would be the perfect time to get the pictures taken on the Bricks, so she suggested that idea to Dave and they left on the pit  bike together. 

 

Just as they were about to walk out to take the pictures they were stopped by a gentelman that worked at the Speedway. He informed them that they would not be allowed to go out onto the track to take the pictures, but could accomplish the same task in Pit Lane. Dave agreed and got down on his hands and knees and "Kissed the Bricks", while Ashley captured the momment for him. After she snapped the picture, Dave invited her over to take a picture to remember the momment, and suggested that the track worker take the photograph of the two of them on the bricks. 

 

As Ashley tells it: After I turned around from giving a brief tutorioal on my camera, I remember Dave being down on one knee. I thought, ok he wants me to sit on his knee to have our picture taken together. So as I approached Dave, with the intention of sitting on his knee, he told me to stand beside him. As i started to walk around him, to stand behind/beside him, Dave stopped me and I looked down at him, as if to say, What are you doing? and he looked up at me and said "Will you marry me?" I was in shock i think because i didn't even recall answering him with "Are you kidding?" He propmtly said "No, I am not kidding, Will you marry me?" At that time I said "Yes!" and started crying.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dave got up and gave me a hug and a kiss. As we started back for the camera, the track worker handed it to me and struggled to get out a "Congratulaions!" I was litteraly week at the knees. Dave told me to ride the pit bike back to the garage, and I explianed that I couldn't even if i tried. I spent the rest of the day on cloud nine! From there Ashley has been excited for the day to come where they each say "I DO" and get to spend their lives together.

 

After Dave took Ashley to Colonial Williamsburg for Grand Illumination in early December 2014, she fell in love with the town, and the idea that getting married in Williamsburg would be amazing.  

 

The decision to get married in Williamsburg at The Wren Chapel on the William & Mary Campus did not come easy to Ashley, as most know. After alot of venue shopping (this location being the fifth), it was brought to Ashley's attention that both parties do not have to be alumni of the college in order to get married in The Wren Chapel. At that point wedding plans took off!