Hamanassett Bed & Breakfast
With the season of love upon us, many couples will be traveling to a B&B for a romantic getaway (and maybe even hoping their loved one pops the big question). In honor of Valentine’s Day, we’ve asked our innkeepers about some of the most memorable proposal stories that took place during a couple’s getaway. They range from sweet, funny, and even a bit shocking. We’re getting started with two stories from Hamanassett Bed & Breakfast and Gillum House.
“My favorite proposal is one in which I helped a young man on Christmas of 2013. He wanted to do something special. We decided to wrap his girlfriend’s engagement ring like an ornament and hang it on the Christmas tree. All she knew was that there was a special ornament for her on the tree, which she had to find. We stood back as she searched and her boyfriend would say to her “hot” or “cold” as she looked. When she eventually found and opened her package, he got down on one knee and formally proposed. The happy couple now comes back to Hamanassett each Christmas season to celebrate the occasion.” – Ashley Mon, innkeeper at Hamanassett Bed & Breakfast in Chester Heights, PA
“I had donated an inn-to-inn package to a BMW Rally. The winner was a young man who was in the military. When he made the reservation, he told me he was planning to propose to his lady and asked for ideas on how it could be done. On arrival, he slipped the ring to me. Part of the package was a dinner. I tied the ring with a ribbon to the clapper of a little silver bell she was to ring when they were ready for the next course. When she picked the bell up, the ring would drop down. My thoughts were, I hope she says yes or it will be a very uncomfortable next few days…All went according to schedule except I forgot that the bell would be ringing for that and I went in to serve. He looked up and asked if they could have a few minutes. I felt so stupid! They sent me a photo of their son when he was born and about four years after the proposal, they returned accompanied by his aunt and uncle on their way home from another rally. He was just back from a tour in Iraq at that time.” – Kathleen Panek, innkeeper at Gillum House in Shinnston, WV
