Pandemic Seals the Deal
for Newly Engaged Couples
SOPHIE PANZER | JE STAFF,
Zach Wasserman and Anna Franzini
F or Zach Wasserman and Anna Franzini,
2020 was an opportunity to put their
relationship into perspective.

“A pandemic will defi nitely help you make a
decision one way or the other, whether you want to
be together for the rest of your life,” Wasserman said.

Th e couple got engaged on July 11, as they were
getting ready to leave New York City to be closer to
family in Philadelphia. Th ey had already designed
a ring together, so he planned a ruse to maintain
the element of surprise when he fi nally popped the
question. Wasserman convinced Franzini to accompany him
on a hike in the Hudson Valley with some of their
friends, who pretended to back out at the last minute
so they could go alone. Th ey hiked to the top of a
mountain, and when Franzini asked Wasserman to get
the snacks out of his backpack, he pulled out the ring.

In a year of seemingly endless cancellations,
they’re one of many Jewish couples who have decided
to commit to each other despite the uncertainties of
a global pandemic.

6 MARCH 25, 2021
Courtesy of Zach Wasserman
Rebekah Th omas said yes to Devin Schecter on
Dec. 22.

“It had been a horrible year for everybody. I only
know a few examples of people who have thrived. But
there was something about the year and having it all
be so crappy from the end of March that I wanted to
kind of go out with a bang, end the year on a good
note,” Schecter said.

He took Th omas to Manayunk, where they went
for their fi rst date. He told her it was just dinner, but
his friends and family members were there to put
out fl owers and take pictures. Th omas had hoped he
would propose soon, and she got the confi rmation
she was waiting for before they left .

“Th is silly, silly guy here left his text message
conversation open with his buddy from college, his
old roommate, saying that he was going to ask my
dad for permission to marry me,” she said.

Adam Stepansky proposed to Pamela Mahler
on June 13 during a day trip to New Hope. Mahler
sensed something was afoot when Stepansky, who is
not particularly outdoorsy, suggested they take a hike
MAZEL TOV!
down a path by the river, where he recited a speech
about their love and got down on one knee.

Th e couple had been dating long distance before
February 2020, when Mahler moved from New York
City to join Stepansky in Wayne. Six weeks aft er they
moved in together, pandemic shutdowns began.

Stepansky knew there was no one else he would
rather be stuck in quarantine with.

“I found the pandemic oddly comforting,” he said.

“I kind of was starting to feel in my heart, but this
helped make it really clear to me that Pam was the
right person for me to spend my life with.”
Th omas, Schecter, Wasserman and Franzini
agreed that the pandemic made them realize they
had made the right choice.

Th omas said that even though there were points
when she and Schecter wanted to strangle each other in
the early days of the crisis, they ultimately grew closer.

“We’re still getting along and we just love each
other’s company, and thankfully it did not tear us
apart,” she said.

Franzini said the new normal has highlighted
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