When Alyssa Walker worked near the Capitol, she would regularly swing by the family business that Jacob Silhi managed, Tony’s Delicatessen & Catering and order a hot chocolate, snack and a lunch. “I was in so often that another one of his regular customers made a comment to him that no woman eats that much (though really, I do), and that I must like him,” Alyssa says. When he finally asked for her number she remembers having visions of saying no and never being able to eat there again. She promptly dished out her information, and the rest is delicious history.

It should come as no surprise that the couple took their romance to one of the culinary epicenters of Europe: beautiful Italy. On Christmas Eve 2006, Jacob convinced Alyssa to bundle up and take a late night stroll to the iconic Trevi fountain. He handed her three coins and told her to make a wish. Though she admits dropping the third coin before getting it in the fountain, that didn’t stop Jacob from getting down on one knee and proposing. “I believe my first response was ‘Shut up.’ Tears just started streaming down my face, and I said ‘Yes,’” she remembers. “Then I hit him in the arm for letting me look like a homeless woman when he knew he was going to propose!”

Both Alyssa and Jacob wanted their wedding to be very personalized and elegant. “If I had to sum it up in a word, it would be ethereal,” she says. “We sketched each element to reflect our personalities, likes, cultural heritages and relationship.” Alyssa created her own dress with the help of Michael and Sanae Sommerfield, just one of the many small details she thoroughly enjoyed in the planning process.

Guests arrived at a garden ceremony surrounded by thousands of blooming roses, while a music quartet and a vocalist performed songs written especially for the couple. The violin was a very important element as Alyssa’s grandmother, now deceased, had played the instrument in the symphony for 17 years, and this was their way to have her “with them.” They included their proposal story and picture on the program along with the lyrics of their first dance song.

At the reception, everyone enjoyed hors d’oeuvres and a candy bar with dozens of the couple’s favorite nostalgic candy selections. “The décor was soft and romantic old-world-meets-new, infused with hundreds of soft scented candles and thousands of peonies and roses ranging from off-white to soft pink to bright fuchsia,” says Alyssa. “The cake showcased pictures of us, our escort cards were poetry books from collections from my favorite poets along with personalized bookmarks and our wedding favor was a donation to a local charity that I have been personally involved with as a volunteer and a cause I feel is very important (WEAVE: Women Escaping A Violent Environment.)”

A belly dancer also performed for guests during the cocktail hour, a highlight for many of the guests. “It was a way to integrate my husband’s Palestinian culture into our wedding celebration,” she says. “The rest of the evening we had a DJ.”

Alyssa notes her favorite part of the day was walking down the aisle, meeting her groom half way and proceeding to the altar together hand-in-hand. “The look on his face when he saw me and that moment when our eyes met was magical,” she recalls. “Everyone and everything else disappeared and it was just us and the rest of our lives. I will never forget it.”

Ceremony Site: International World Peace Rose Gardens
Officiant: Bishop George Long, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
Photographer: The Memory Journalists   Phone: 916-802-8004
Videographer: Sheffield Multimedia
Reception Site: Sacramento Grand Ballroom
Hair: Heather Mell, Allure Salon & Spa
Make-up: Heather Mell, Allure Salon & Spa
Bridal Attire: Miosa Bride   Phone: 916-443-1301
Invitations: Handmade
Flowers: Lisa Walker, mother of the bride
Caterer: Event Architects
Cake: Shelton's Wedding Cake Designs
DJ/Entertainment: Mr. DJ
Transportation/Limo Services: Baja Limo
Favors: Donation to WEAVE, handmade card
Table Linens: Event Architects
Table Decorations: Lisa Walker, mother of the bride
Chair Covers: Event Architects
Lighting: Mr. DJ
Honeymoon Location: Palm Springs
First Dance Song: Feels Like Home by Chantal Kreviazuk
Cake Cutting Song: Fly Me to the Moon by Frank Sinatra (song serenaded to couple at a street bistro in Italy)
Bouquet Toss Song: No toss, dedicated bouquet to groom's parents in honor of their 30th wedding anniversary
Garter Toss Song: You Shook Me All Night Long by ACDC