CHARLES COUNTY, Md. — The coronavirus pandemic forced a Charles County couple to postpone their wedding, but actor John Krasinski surprised them with an unforgettable virtual celebration.
"It’s been a crazy last couple of days, really surreal last 24 hours," John Lush, an athletic director at Henry E. Lackey High School, said.
Lush said Krasinski reached out to him after he tweeted out a video of his proposal to his now-fiancee Susan Hedrick (a high school teacher), in which he mimicked the proposal between Jim and Pam, two of the central characters from "The Office." Krasinski played Jim in the series.
The iconic scene shows Jim proposing to Pam at a gas station in the rain. Why did Lush decide to copy it? He and Hedrick are die-hard fans of "The Office."
"I wanted it to be something that was really unique, really special to us," Lush said. "That show is a big part of our daily lives, as everybody has now seen, so it just fit."
In the tweet, Lush asked Krasinski and his costar who played Pam, Jenna Fischer, if they could make it to their wedding. Instead, Krasinski asked them to come on his new YouTube series, "Some Good News," that the actor started during the pandemic. The couple excitedly agreed, only expecting to be interviewed.
Then, the SGN host surprised them by saying that he could make it to their wedding if they got married on the call right at that moment.
He brought on their parents, some friends and country artist Zac Brown, who serenaded them with a new song.
"It was beautiful," Hedrick said. "He said he had this new song, it was perfect for a wedding. That was definitely where I was ugly crying, because the lyrics were just so perfect, and he was so nice."
Then came the ultimate surprise. Krasinski introduced much of the rest of "The Office" cast to dance to the song played at Jim and Pam's wedding.
"It was so exciting, because we watch them every day over and over," Hedrick said.
Lush echoed how special it was
"We’ll never be able to just explain how powerful it was," he said.
The couple said they plan to recreate Jim and Pam's aisle walk as they exit, which is at least in part why Lush said producers asked the cast to dance to that song.
"There’s 20 people in our bridal party, and we have given people roles, and they’re going to play certain parts," Lush said.
Per the show's name, Some Good News, the couple said they were happy to be part of something happy.
"We talk every week about how awesome of a show it is, because it’s so positive," Lush said. "And the fact that we are now a part of it, and now we’re being flooded with positivity because of it, it’s surreal. We’ll never be able to thank them enough."
They said the cast couldn't have been nicer, and many of them offered words of wisdom and encouragement for their marriage, which they can follow once they can officially tie the knot.
The couple was supposed to get married this June but have postponed it until May 2021 in light of the pandemic.
