Julia Clapp
and
Jamas Branchaud
Please join us for our wedding celebration on
Our Story
Jamas’s Version
Back in autumn of 2012, Jamas (Jam) and Julia took a black and white film photography class together at Unity College. Jamas had tried (and failed) to get out of it. After a few weeks, Jam had developed a fascination with Julia, and with the support of friends he worked up the courage to ask her out. Julia turned him down, as she was dating elsewhere and the timing did not play out*. (Paraphrased - see notes.)
Through trials and tribulations through the years, Jam still kept Julia in his thoughts and memories. After a few chance passings-by while wandering the vast city of Belfast, Jam was provided (unsolicited) information from a friend regarding Julia’s workplace. Building up courage for a second time, and with much planning, Jam ventured into Left Bank Books on the ruse of acquiring a new book (which he did read), and invited Julia to a tea party (that was real**) at his house. Julia made an earnest attempt to attend the party but was unable due to work commitments. Unperturbed, Jam redoubled his efforts and invited Julia to a walk in Belfast to take photos of nature, thus tying back to the origins of their connection. Julia, now realizing that this was a full-on date, reluctantly agreed. They embarked on a photography tour around Belfast that turned into a seven-mile walk, learning of their great commonality. As Jam perceived that the stars had finally aligned, timing was once again not on his side, as the very next day the state went into lockdown due to Covid. Julia, now confined to her apartment, decided to move back in with her parents for nearly three months of isolation. But Jam persevered, with the help of Skype dates, and the two of them did video calls once or twice a week until June. When Julia returned to work and her apartment, ending Covid isolation, the two were able to have another in-person date. Since reuniting in person in June of 2020, Jam and Julia have been together - first with in-person dates, visiting each other in their respective homes. And in July of 2021, Julia finally decided to move in with Jam. During their time together, they have celebrated three Christmases, six birthdays (combined), a trip to Michigan, watched many seasons of many shows, ventured around midcoast Maine for many date nights, and further developed their house into a home for two (plus five and then plus one and then plus six - total twelve animals in their care as of this writing). Finally, on the third of September 2022, after much plotting and conspiring (as per Jam’s usual), Jam very elaborately and well-executedly proposed to Julia, and after a long hangtime, she said yes.
(Notes: *Jam actually said “Julia was wasting her time dating someone else”
**It was really real ***
*** No, really
Julia’s Version
Julia chose black and white photography as an elective in her first semester at Unity College in fall of 2012, after transferring in for her junior year. She enjoyed the class and enjoyed meeting Jamas - she still particularly remembers his photograph of a taxidermied hummingbird - but they only had the one class together, and after graduation Jamas moved away and Julia dove into her working life in Belfast.
Eight years later, in early 2020, she saw Jam once in the Belfast Co-op - he waved, and she knew she recognized him but couldn’t quite place him. She saw him next when he came into Left Bank Books, and suspected he was there to talk to her, though she wasn’t sure why until her reminded her that they had been at Unity College together. He invited her to his tea party, but she couldn’t take the day off, so she declined. Her coworker noted to her after Jam left that he was very handsome, and Julia agreed that he was. When Jam came back to ask her out for a walk a couple of weeks later, she said yes.
On their first date, Julia was surprised at how much they had to talk about and how much they agreed on. She couldn’t remember having so much in common with someone on a first date, or feeling so interested in talking more.
Through everything terrible about the first few weeks and months of Covid lockdown, the bright spot was Julia and Jamas’s video calls, which gave them each a crash course about the other (they would start the calls prepared with written lists of questions and topics). After they began to date in-person again, and beginning to face some real-life joys and challenges together (the loss of Julia’s family’s cat, which Jamas comforted her through; many long talks about life and past hardships and plans for the future; two moves; meeting families; adopting pets; spending lots of time together with Julia’s sister and brother-in-law-to-be), Julia realized that she could clearly envision a whole life with Jam. But she took things slowly, waiting months after Jam first suggested the possibility to move in with him, and holding firm in her belief that they should live together for at least a year before considering marriage. So when Jamas proposed in September 2022, on a surprise picnic at the Vesper Hill Children’s Chapel in Rockport (one of Julia’s favorite places) her answer was a wholehearted yes.
She is looking forward to life full of tea and cheese, lots and lots of pet cats and rabbits, back rubs and back-cracking hugs, game campaigns, impromptu songs, and many years of mutual support and love.
Back in autumn of 2012, Jamas (Jam) and Julia took a black and white film photography class together at Unity College. Jamas had tried (and failed) to get out of it. After a few weeks, Jam had developed a fascination with Julia, and with the support of friends he worked up the courage to ask her out. Julia turned him down, as she was dating elsewhere and the timing did not play out*. (Paraphrased - see notes.)
Through trials and tribulations through the years, Jam still kept Julia in his thoughts and memories. After a few chance passings-by while wandering the vast city of Belfast, Jam was provided (unsolicited) information from a friend regarding Julia’s workplace. Building up courage for a second time, and with much planning, Jam ventured into Left Bank Books on the ruse of acquiring a new book (which he did read), and invited Julia to a tea party (that was real**) at his house. Julia made an earnest attempt to attend the party but was unable due to work commitments. Unperturbed, Jam redoubled his efforts and invited Julia to a walk in Belfast to take photos of nature, thus tying back to the origins of their connection. Julia, now realizing that this was a full-on date, reluctantly agreed. They embarked on a photography tour around Belfast that turned into a seven-mile walk, learning of their great commonality. As Jam perceived that the stars had finally aligned, timing was once again not on his side, as the very next day the state went into lockdown due to Covid. Julia, now confined to her apartment, decided to move back in with her parents for nearly three months of isolation. But Jam persevered, with the help of Skype dates, and the two of them did video calls once or twice a week until June. When Julia returned to work and her apartment, ending Covid isolation, the two were able to have another in-person date. Since reuniting in person in June of 2020, Jam and Julia have been together - first with in-person dates, visiting each other in their respective homes. And in July of 2021, Julia finally decided to move in with Jam. During their time together, they have celebrated three Christmases, six birthdays (combined), a trip to Michigan, watched many seasons of many shows, ventured around midcoast Maine for many date nights, and further developed their house into a home for two (plus five and then plus one and then plus six - total twelve animals in their care as of this writing). Finally, on the third of September 2022, after much plotting and conspiring (as per Jam’s usual), Jam very elaborately and well-executedly proposed to Julia, and after a long hangtime, she said yes.
(Notes: *Jam actually said “Julia was wasting her time dating someone else”
**It was really real ***
*** No, really
Julia’s Version
Julia chose black and white photography as an elective in her first semester at Unity College in fall of 2012, after transferring in for her junior year. She enjoyed the class and enjoyed meeting Jamas - she still particularly remembers his photograph of a taxidermied hummingbird - but they only had the one class together, and after graduation Jamas moved away and Julia dove into her working life in Belfast.
Eight years later, in early 2020, she saw Jam once in the Belfast Co-op - he waved, and she knew she recognized him but couldn’t quite place him. She saw him next when he came into Left Bank Books, and suspected he was there to talk to her, though she wasn’t sure why until her reminded her that they had been at Unity College together. He invited her to his tea party, but she couldn’t take the day off, so she declined. Her coworker noted to her after Jam left that he was very handsome, and Julia agreed that he was. When Jam came back to ask her out for a walk a couple of weeks later, she said yes.
On their first date, Julia was surprised at how much they had to talk about and how much they agreed on. She couldn’t remember having so much in common with someone on a first date, or feeling so interested in talking more.
Through everything terrible about the first few weeks and months of Covid lockdown, the bright spot was Julia and Jamas’s video calls, which gave them each a crash course about the other (they would start the calls prepared with written lists of questions and topics). After they began to date in-person again, and beginning to face some real-life joys and challenges together (the loss of Julia’s family’s cat, which Jamas comforted her through; many long talks about life and past hardships and plans for the future; two moves; meeting families; adopting pets; spending lots of time together with Julia’s sister and brother-in-law-to-be), Julia realized that she could clearly envision a whole life with Jam. But she took things slowly, waiting months after Jam first suggested the possibility to move in with him, and holding firm in her belief that they should live together for at least a year before considering marriage. So when Jamas proposed in September 2022, on a surprise picnic at the Vesper Hill Children’s Chapel in Rockport (one of Julia’s favorite places) her answer was a wholehearted yes.
She is looking forward to life full of tea and cheese, lots and lots of pet cats and rabbits, back rubs and back-cracking hugs, game campaigns, impromptu songs, and many years of mutual support and love.