This Couple's Love Story Is So Special, It Won Them A Dream Wedding

February 23, 2016

Samantha Dilberian and Staff Sgt. Chris St. Onge of Tampa, Florida, didn't realize how special their love story was until they put it down on paper while applying to win a dream wedding.

Richard Harrell Photography

Staff Sgt. Onge served in Afghanistan with Samantha's brother Bryan Dilberian. The two were on a routine patrol in July 2011 with the rest of their squad when an explosion shocked them all.

"We're not 100 percent sure what happened, we just know an explosion happened that wounded Bryan and killed another member of our squad," St. Onge told PEOPLE Magazine.

Bryan lost both of his legs and his left arm. St. Onge helped stop the bleeding and got him to the hospital. The Bronze Star recipient spent the next few months checking on his friend through emails with Bryan's sister, Samantha.

Richard Harrell Photography

The two emailed and talked on the phone for eight months before they finally met in person.

"We just kept talking and one thing lead to another," he said.

Soon after the couple became engaged in August 2015, they heard about a contest for military personnel in the area.

The couple's story won the third annual "Mission I Do" Dream Wedding Giveaway, which included an impressive check for $30,000 and an all-inclusive wedding at a waterfront venue.

Richard Harrell Photography

And Bryan served as St. Onge's best man.

Richard Harrell Photography

"Everything is just working out perfectly," Samantha says. "I couldn't have asked for a better husband than Chris and he's so close to Bryan. It's just perfect."

via PEOPLE