Lauren Smith and James Ridgway, Jr. in Pizzeria Paradiso in Old Town. Contributed
Alexandria — Lauren Elisabeth Smith met James Alan Ridgway, Jr. during March Madness (2014) on eHarmony.
"Your profile brought a smile to my face" on March 22 and the two met for dinner at the Cheesecake Factory in Montgomery Mall on Thursday evening, March 27.
The rest, as they say, is history for these two history majors.
At the time Lauren, a lifelong Alexandrian, was busy with her personal concierge business, Do More with LES, but today, with Ja's encouragement, Lauren works at Children's National Medical Center, a place near and dear to her heart.
Ja has worked at FINRA for over 18 years and is currently a project manager there. When he isn't there, he can be found with his daughter, reading multiple books at a time or toying around with Legos.
Ja asked Lauren to marry him on New Year's Eve. Technically, it was Jan. 1, 2015 at approximately 12:02 a.m. while watching fireworks on a Potomac Riverboat Company boat, The Miss Mallory, after a day of volunteering with First Night Alexandria. Perfect setting, lots of fun, great friends and big smiles, a beautiful ring and ultimately ..."Yes!"
House-hunting in Maryland was old hat for Ja and a drastic measure for Lauren. They moved into Montgomery Village on Lauren's 38th birthday in April 2015. Next up, nuptials in the Rosemont section of Alexandria thanks to and surrounded by dear friends and huge families.