Bad weather aside, the wedding will go on

Jul. 4—For months, Robbin Layne and LeRoy Schatz had been planning for their July 1 wedding to take place behind their Terre Haute home.

They built a wedding arch and had flowers on it, and they rented 100 chairs for guests. The invitations went out, and they selected a minister to officiate.

Robbin spent much time on the yard so it would like nice for those attending.

But a severe wind storm Thursday and subsequent storms over the weekend made their wedding memorable in ways they never envisioned.

While they had to make some modifications with little warning, in the end, it all worked out.

"It turned out awesome," said Robbin Layne Schatz, 68. Leroy is 69, and it a second marriage for both of them.

They've known each other for many years but went their separate ways; they've dated for 13 years.

Like thousands of other Vigo County residents, after the Thursday derecho, they lost power; a small tree fell in the back yard near the arch, and the yard had a lot of debris. "It was so stressful ... I shed quite a few tears," Robbin said.

Neighbors helped with cleanup, and Robbin and LeRoy decided the wedding would go on. "We got the whole yard cleaned up, thinking we might still be able to do it," she said.

But on the day of the wedding, it poured in the early morning hours and weather forecasts initially called for thunderstorms all day. "We gave up," she said.

They moved the wedding to where they planned the reception at the Sycamore Club, close to their home.

"Thank goodness they had power," Robbin Schatz said. Otherwise, they would have had to cancel their big day.

The couple quickly contacted everyone they had invited so they would know to go to the new location. And of course, by then, the sun was shining, although it did end up raining again a few hours later. They delayed the wedding by an hour, from 3 to about 4 p.m

The neighborhood is close-knit, and neighbors had been invited.

Robbin is recently retired from Fuqua Elementary, where she was a teaching assistant for English language learners; Leroy, also retired, worked in industry for many years.

The newly married Schatzes didn't go on an exotic honeymoon — they stayed at home, which had no power or internet — and both services were still out early Monday afternoon.

The Schatzes had to throw away food in their refrigerator because it had gone bad.

However, the neighborhood came together, again, with some members grilling food that had to be cooked or making breakfast and sharing it with others.

The South 38th Street neighborhood is on a dead end, and when power outages occur, there tends to be a lag in when they have power restored, Robbin said. "It's a little frustrating." However, utility crews were finally in the area Monday.

And by early Monday evening, power had been restored.

Leroy said he's thankful for neighbors, and the Sycamore Club, for ensuring the wedding would go on.

Sue Loughlin can be reached at 812-231-4235 or at sue.loughlin@tribstar.com Follow Sue on Twitter @TribStarSue