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Excelsior, MN — Valentine’s Day isn’t for everyone, but even Cupid’s toughest critic would struggle to turn away from this love story.

Jim Lundquist and Sarah Stanchfield got engaged last Valentine’s Day, so it was only appropriate they got married on this Valentine’s Day.

“I’ll probably cry,” Sarah’s dad says before the wedding. “I’ve got Kleenex here.”

Sarah and Jim both have Down Syndrome. It took a lot of planning and paperwork to make the wedding possible. It also took a great deal of support from friends and family.

But finally after all that work, the big day was here. And when Jim saw his bride in her dress for the first time, the expression on his face was filled with more joy than anyone could imagine.

“I want to thank you for putting a smile on my face,” said Pastor Dave Olson of Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church in Excelsior. “This is the most romantic Valentine’s Day I’ve ever had.”

Both Sarah and Jim knew they wanted to get married after seeing their own siblings marry. They were friends at first, then dated more than two years before Jim popped the question.

Thursday’s ceremony at the Lafayette Club on Lake Minnetonka only lasted about 15 minutes. Sarah and Jim exchanged vows, then rings, before finally kissing. Afterward, Jim pumped his arms in the air in celebration.

It’s proof no matter what challenges life may bring, Cupid’s arrow can always find the bullseye.

Jim and Sarah currently live in different homes. Hammer Residences is Sarah’s provider. Jim has another provider. Both organizations worked together to make sure Jim and Sarah could live together.

The couple doesn’t want children but will have a cat. They plan to honeymoon at Walt Disney World in Florida this spring.

(Copyright 2008 by KARE. All Rights Reserved.)

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