At an ‘apocalyptic wedding,’ love (and smoke) was in the air

Ms. Arthur proposed to her in July 2021 at Daddy’s Plants, a plant store in Buffalo. After she got down on one knee, Mx. Cohen read aloud a poem they had written for Mrs. Arthur and had kept in her wallet for months. The two framed the poem in their Park Slope apartment, where they moved in in April 2022.

The couple was married by Madeline Plasencia, municipal secretary, in front of two witnesses, Mx. Cohen’s mother, Tina Cohen, and Mrs. Arthur’s father, Don Arthur. The escape had materialized in the span of seven days. max Cohen said her LGBTQ community helped the couple plan their last-minute wedding, including luke deanMs. Arthur’s makeup artist, and Designs by Miriam Bloomthe florist.

Much of the couple’s relationship has been about finding joy in difficult times, Mx. Cohen said. Mrs. Arthur’s mother passed away in March 2021 and Mx. Cohen, who came out as transgender a year into their relationship, said it was a difficult time given the prevalence of anti-trans rhetoric and legislation.

“For the day we end up married to be a day this sky is on fire is nothing new to us,” Mrs Arthur said.

That night, they had a celebratory dinner with five friends at The Fly, a restaurant in Brooklyn. Afterwards, they went to Ginger’s Bar, a lesbian establishment. Although several friends had canceled to avoid exposure to poor air quality, the couple was not bothered that their wedding ceremony was in a historically chaotic day.

“That care, compassion and deep, deep love that we have for each other can overcome anything, even if the world is on fire, because we will always have each other,” Mx. Cohen said.