A Disco-Inspired Love Story

A chance meeting. A long love story. One unforgettable night.

Randy Gantenbein, who once managed Paul Allen’s properties and has spent decades in hospitality, and Ernie Vigil, a Navy veteran and longtime nurse, first met in a San Diego Starbucks on Easter Sunday. Randy was sipping coffee and flipping through his horoscope. “It said, ‘You’ll become romantically involved with a Scorpio.’ About 10 seconds later, Ernie walks up, put out his hand and said, ‘Hi, I’m Ernie.’ I joked, ‘I suppose you’re a Scorpio?’ And he said, ‘Yes, I am!’”

After nearly three decades as partners, the two decided it was finally time to tie the knot. “For a long time we didn’t do it because it was tax disadvantageous,” Randy says. “But as we got older, we started losing close friends and family and we decided we didn’t want any more time to pass without having everyone we loved together in one place.”

Last October, 175 guests from 24 different states arrived at Bellevue’s El Gaucho, kicking off festivities beneath a glittering, chandelier-filled tent, where champagne flowed to the sound of a Spanish guitarist. Guests made their way inside, where the restaurant took on the feel of an old-world supper club, with intimate tables, pretty flowers, and soft amber lighting.

“We wanted this to be a celebration of love and of our friends and family, instead of a celebration of life after we’re gone.”

The ceremony was full of surprises. After mingling with drinks and appetizers, the room went completely dark, and Ernie appeared at the bottom of the grand staircase in a spotlight, serenading Randy with Chicago’s “Colour My World.” “Everybody knows Ernie sings, but nobody knew he was going to sing that night.”

Their close friend and former Vegas headliner Bernadette Bascom followed from the balcony with a performance of Jennifer Hudson’s “One Night Only.”

Randy’s two longtime friends from college performed a piano duet of  “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” honoring their shared Kansas roots. “Every part of the ceremony feels so true to us.”

A tribute video played on a giant screen, styled like an Academy Awards ‘In Memoriam.’ “We’ve lost a lot of close friends and family, and we wanted to honor them in a way that felt meaningful.”

After exchanging vows they wrote themselves, the couple shared their first dance to Garth Brooks’ “To Make You Feel My Love.”

Dinner followed, paired with wines and accompanied by live piano music.

After dinner, the celebration moved to a gold, custom-made, circular dance floor. Randy once opened a major disco in Dallas in the ’70s, so planning a party like this came naturally. “Every year our friends ask, ‘When’s the disco party finally happening?’ Well, we did it!”

“We spent six months creating the playlist for dancing.” Each table featured napkin rings with oversized faux-diamond rings, props for dancing to Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies.”

The ladies cleared the floor for the men to dance to “It’s Raining Men” — “a great way to break people into the dance floor.”

The finale involved giant cannons showering amber and white feathers over guests as Donna Summer’s “Last Dance” played. “Finding enough feathers wasn’t easy, but it was absolutely worth it.”

Randy, with his hospitality experience, led most of the planning, while Ernie, a nurse, made sure everyone felt comfortable and cared for.

The Honey Crumb cake was five-tiers and decorated with their monogram and edible gold scrollwork. It was filled with almond hot milk sponge, marzipan cream cheese, and apricot compote.

Instead of gifts, Randy and Ernie requested donations to Mary’s Place, a charity they love. Guests could scan a QR code on the invitation to give. “We wanted this one night only — absolute positivity and sharing love with everyone we cherish.”

The entire celebration was beautifully captured on video by Mitch Mattraw.

Thanks for sharing your story with us, Randy and Ernie. We wish you a lifetime of love — and lots of singing and dancing.