A surprise boat proposal on the Chicago River turned into a full-on celebration when cheers erupted from the Riverwalk and a nearby bridge revealed an unforgettable twist for the couple.
Sahar Bayat’s first visit to partner Bree Taylor, in Chicago, involved an architectural boat tour, so a trip along the Chicago River felt like the perfect time for Sahar to propose.
Bree, 31, was told that Sahar had a surprise date planned – which wasn’t out of the ordinary for the couple – and that a Groupon deal had meant that they had a semi-private boat ride down the river, on October 4.
The two other people on the boat ride turned out to be a photographer and someone ready to shoot a video, so Bree had no suspicions that the trip could be leading to a proposal.
But then, on the front of the boat, Sahar asked the big question.
The moment itself was captured on video – but what happened next made the moment truly special for the couple.
Sahar, 34, asked Bree to look up at a nearby bridge and said, “That’s all your friends and family.”
Bree saw a sea of familiar faces cheering and holding a sing, “Will you marry me?”, and everywhere the couple then looked, strangers on the riverwalk began to join in the celebration, too.
Sahar, who later shared a video of the moment on social media, said: “It was so cool seeing so many people reach out complimenting the proposal.
“I saw one comment that said the proposal was somehow public but then private, all at the same time, and that’s really how it felt, especially as we took the boat for another 30-minute cruise and photoshoot after the actual proposal happened.
“The cheers and the crowd watching were just surreal and so epic.
“I’ve gone all out on romantic gestures before, but to see how others reacted to this one made me feel so proud of our community and our city.
“It felt like a moment of unity and protest, all at once.”
