01:00 AM EDT on Sunday, April 10, 2005

Meredith Jones and James Armstrong III

Manning Chapel at Brown University, Providence

10.10.04

"The first time I met Jim, I went to work the next day and told my friends: 'I met the man I'm going to marry. How does it sound -- Meredith Armstrong?' I had experienced plenty of relationships and had never felt that way."

Jim Armstrong and Meredith Jones were introduced by Meredith's brother. Jim, a TV reporter, worked with Michael, a cameraman, at ABC Channel 6. "The guys from work would go out every Thursday night, and it wasn't unusual for friends or family members to join us," says Jim. "So one night, Mike said, 'Hey, my sister is coming.' I liked her the minute she walked into the room."

Michael had invited Meredith specifically to meet Jim. But Jim didn't know that, and felt a little uneasy about dating a co-worker's sister, so he didn't say anything to Mike.

Michael told his sister: "Sorry Meredith. Jim hasn't said anything to me about you, so I guess this isn't going to work out."

But Meredith joined the group again three weeks later. This time, she and Jim stood in the parking lot talking for an hour and a half after the place closed, but then he simply shook her hand goodnight. He still wasn't comfortable with the idea of dating a colleague's sister.

Meredith was tenacious. She sent Jim an e-mail, inviting him to have coffee with her. "She included her phone number, so I called and invited her to dinner instead," says Jim.

"We first met in June 2002, our first date was July 17, and by September 1, I knew I wanted to marry her," says Jim.

Jim, 28, is from Providence. He went to Classical High School, then Boston University for a degree in journalism. He now works for Fox 25 in Boston, doing the morning show from 6 until 9.

Meredith, 32, grew up in Cranston, went to Cranston High School West, did her undergraduate work at the University of Rhode Island and received her master's degree from Rhode Island College. She's a social worker for the Cranston School Department.

Today, their interfaith wedding at Manning Chapel features a priest and a rabbi; Jim is Catholic, Meredith, Jewish. Says Jim: "It was no easy task finding officiants willing to look past our religious differences and marry us."

Father Richard Beaulieu and Rabbi Richard Messing share a sense of humour, which they sprinkle throughout the ceremony. "When you're in love, the whole world is Jewish!" says Messing, and "We're here today to acknowledge that Catholics and Jews can get along with each other!" from Beaulieu.

The finale of the ceremony is the breaking of the glass. Rabbi Messing explains the symbolism: the fragile, delicate nature of marriage. "Like the glass, once shattered, it's hard to put the pieces back together again." Then Rabbi Messing looks at Jim: "And this is probably the last time you'll put your foot down!"