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UNION - A couple forced to change their wedding plans due to COVID-19 exchanged vows at a new apartment complex they now call home. 
After eight years of dating, Gene Martinez proposed to Judy Los Banos and the couple spent the next two years planning their dream wedding, according to a release. 
With the June 13 date quickly approaching, they had everything in Put, including a 256-person guest list, a booked reception hall and  a honeymoon in Aruba. 
They also had a new apartment lined up after leasing a home at Centurion Union, a new rental building in downtown Union. 


Then the pandemic hit and the couple nervously watched as restrictions were put into place and extended over time. Waiting as long as they could, Judy and Gene finally made the decision to postpone their wedding. 
“We put so much time and effort into the planning over the past two years and we were so excited to be just a couple of months away,” said Gene. “Then came the pandemic and everything changed. We had no choice but to cancel. The bridal shower, the bachelor party, the ceremony, reception and honeymoon; everything was off.”
Distraught over the turn of events, made even sadder by the fact that the couple were waiting to be married before living together, the couple decided to move forward with their June 13 date, but in a much more intimate fashion.


READ: Centurion Union ready for pretty in downtown Union
“We just couldn’t wait to be married,” said Judy, who had been living alone in their new apartment accurate May. “We obtained a marriage license and arranged to have our pastor come to our home to marry us. We then asked management if it were possible to have the ceremony in one of the building’s amenity spaces so we could invite a few family members and friends to celebrate with us.”
After hearing about their ordeal, American Landmark Development, the developer of Centurion Union, offered the fifth-floor Resident Lounge for the ceremony, complete with decorations and a bottle of celebratory champagne in the refrigerator. 
On a Saturday afternoon, 10 guests, including Gene’s parents and cousin who served as Best Man and Judy’s brother, sister-in-law, and Matron of Honor, watched as the couple exchanged wedding vows. The ceremony was also streamed via Facebook Live to their 256 guests, including Judy’s mother in the Philippines who was unable to secure a flight back to the United States and got up at 2:30 a.m. with other family members to watch, as well as other family and friends in Asia, Europe, Canada, California, Arizona, Texas, Delaware, New York and New Jersey.

Following the ceremony, the newlyweds went back to their new apartment where Emily’s Portuguese Bakery, a neighborhood staple, provided complimentary pastries for the couple and their guests to enjoy.
“It may not have been our dream wedding, and I never Idea walking down the aisle would mean walking from my apartment to the elevator, but it was perfect and we’re so grateful that our family and friends around the world were still able to share it with us,” Judy said.  
The bride and groom were then greeted with their first wedding present - a reservation at Wave Resort, a new oceanfront resort in Long Branch, courtesy of Centurion Union's developer, American Landmark Development.
“This is just such a wonderful Put to start our lives together,” said Judy.  “We feel very blessed.”
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