I Do!: Leah Nieves and Christine Patrissi

Christine Patrissi and Leah Nieves met by chance a decade ago, when both were University at Buffalo undergraduates.

Nieves, then a sophomore, said she was on her way to make a cup of tea in a campus lounge when she stopped to chat with Patrissi, a senior and dormitory resident adviser, who was putting up a bulletin board in a hallway.

“She was gorgeous,” Patrissi said, “and I thought she might be interested in girls." For Nieves, the feeling was mutual but novel, because, she explained, “I had never dated a woman before.”

They said their love grew as they crossed paths at ice-breaker meetings and campus programs. They eventually became late-night study partners and traveled on holiday breaks to stay overnight with Patrissi’s sister, who then lived in Nesconset.

Patrissi, a nurse practitioner, said that after dating for six years, they got engaged in April 2021 in Niagara Falls.

Led to believe she was taking a graduation photo, Patrissi said she wore her lab coat and stethoscope. They were finishing up with the photos when Nieves unexpectedly dropped to one knee, took out a ring and declared, “You are the love of my life. . . . Marry me.” Patrissi said she said yes through joyful tears.

Although they live in Montvale, New Jersey, Patrissi said the couple chose to celebrate their Nov. 3 wedding and reception at The Mansion at West Sayville to accommodate their 120 guests, a number of whom are close family members the couple had visited often on Long Island. Patrissi said that her sister, with whom she shared a room growing up and who now lives in Miller Place, helped plan the wedding and bridal shower, and was the matron of honor. Nieves, a dental hygienist, said that her aunt, of Massapequa Park, was an honored guest.

In tribute to their diverse backgrounds — Patrissi is Irish-Italian and Nieves is Puerto Rican and Guyanese — the couple combined their last names into one. “So we’re now Mrs. and Mrs. Nieves-Patrissi,” Patrissi said.

She added, “Blending our cultures, traditions and backgrounds has been complex, but so beautiful.”