Couple Admires Beautiful House on Daily Walks. Then, They Leave a Note in the Mailbox with an Unusual Request (Exclusive)
The couple took a risk and documented it on TikTok, where the idea has taken flight
A couple looking for the perfect wedding venue decided to take a chance on a beautiful home in their neighborhood.
Christina Butkus and her fiancé got engaged last summer and have been looking for a venue, with the hopes of getting married this fall. The venue search has been a challenge for the couple, as they're also in the process of trying to move out of state and purchase a home.
"We're trying to move to Savannah, Georgia, to buy a house there. Obviously, we'd like to put more of our money into our house than a wedding venue, so we're looking around but nothing's set in stone. If we have to, we'll push [the wedding] back, but that's our goal," Butkus tells PEOPLE.
In discussing their venue options, the couple have often joked about a beautiful home in their area, despite not knowing who lives there.
"Every time we go on our morning walk, we pass this mansion that's close to where we live. We always said how perfect it would be if we could get married there," Christina shares.
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What started off as a joke led to further discussions. "We were like, 'Let's knock on their door and ask if we can get married there.' So one night, after a few glasses of wine, we wrote down a letter. We gave them a little bit of background about ourselves, how we're hard-working members of the community and really are young adults trying to save money on a wedding."
That night, Dec. 6, Christina and her fiancé went on a walk and put the letter in the home's mailbox. She also shared video of the adventure on TikTok.
The video shows the two driving by the house during the day, then returning at night to drop off the letter.
"Unfortunately, there's been no answer yet," the bride-to-be says. "I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt that maybe they're seasonal here. We are in Wisconsin and no one wants to be here in the winter. So we're hopeful they're just gone for the season and will see our note eventually. But we have a feeling it's a no."
What has made up for the lack of a real response is the TikTok response to the video, which has amassed more than 5 million views since first being posted.
"The reaction to the video was crazy. I've never had a video blow up like that. I thought it was a joke that it kept going up by thousands. I screenshot it and sent it to my fiancé when we were at 10,000 views and by the time I got to my lunch break at work, we'd hit 500,000," Christina shares.
"Every day, people ask for a part two. It's been awesome to see all the followers interested in this idea."
While Christina does think the chances of hearing back are slim, she hasn't totally counted the possibility out.
"I'm still waiting for a random text like, 'Hey, this is the owner of the mansion. We saw your TikTok, let's do it,' " she admits.
Courtesy of Christina Butkus
Christina Butkus and her fiancéRegardless, Christina has also been touched to see how many other couples are inspired by her idea and hope to try a similar move.
"I get comments every day of people who want to do this and you never know. Maybe there's a super-rich couple out there that wants to help a working couple out," she says.
For those who've told her they might try this themselves, she says, "The worst that can happen is you don't hear back, or you get a no. It's really cool to see people be inspired by this idea. I'm just waiting for it to work out for someone."
Read the original article on People
