Lucky eights

From weddings to births, 8-8-08 a great date to celebrate health, wealth and happiness

By Abigail Curtis, Rocky Mountain News (Contact), Ashleigh Oldland, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published August 9, 2008 at 12:05 a.m.

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Friday was Aug. 8, 2008, an 8-8-8 combo that's considered a lucky day in Chinese culture.

Prosperity and wealth are associated with the number 8. So is eternity, which made Friday a good day to tie the knot.

Here are the stories of three Denver-area couples who picked 8-8-08 to say their "I dos."

'Love at first sight' at wedding rehearsal dinner

"It was love at first sight," Chris Brown said. "People say it doesn't exist, but when you know, you know."

Brown, 29, met Bobbi Shirkey, 26, on Aug. 11, 2006, at a wedding rehearsal dinner in Michigan. He was the best man; she was a cousin of the bride.

Shirkey lived in Michigan, Brown lived in Vail. But they made their long- distance relationship work, and after six months, Shirkey moved to Eagle.

In September 2007, the couple decided to get married. They agreed 8-8-08 would be a good date.

"It is an easy date to remember," Shirkey said. "And though I am not a superstitious person, the 8th sort of fell into our lap. It's kind of cool that it's supposed to be a lucky day to be married."

Brown said he looks forward to their life together.

"It's been a dream come true," he said.

Canines play role of Cupid for Internet daters

Michelle Shoults, 27, and Luke Galles, 28, exchanged vows at Stonebrook Manor in Thornton on the morning of 8-8-08.

They met through an online dating service. Their first date - in September 2006 - was at a dog park with Shoults' black lab, Zoey, and Galles' Doberman, Meg.

"The dogs were in love at first sight," Shoults said, adding that she and Galles were pretty close to that state, too.

Shoults picked the wedding date because she said it would be an anniversary her husband would never forget. She also knew that the date was said to be lucky.

"It's been lucky so far," she said. "The sun was out for our wedding."

Dispatcher dials up romance at night out with the boys

Ben Foster and Trina Hendershot talked quite a bit on the phone. That's because she was a dispatcher and he a technician for Comcast.

But the two didn't meet in person until Hendershot skipped her high school reunion to crash a boys' night out at JD's Bait Shop with co-workers.

Foster asked his friends about the only girl at the party. That was July 31, 2005. Shortly after, they had their first date at a Red Robin restaurant. The Thornton couple has been inseparable ever since.

"I like her because she likes me," Foster, 33, jokes. "When we talked, we just clicked."

The couple got engaged one night when Foster popped the question thusly:

"Wanna get married?"

"Are you sure?"

"Well, I asked you didn't I?"

The couple were wanting a wedding date close to the anniversary of their bait shop meeting when Hendershot heard that the date 8-8-08 meant good luck. The two scheduled a wedding at the Dove House in Lions gate Center in Lafayette.

"I need all the luck I can get," she joked.

Special delivery full of eights

Swaddled in pink and snuggled by her parents, Makayla Marie McReynolds had no idea what a lucky baby she is.

But everyone else did. Jessica McReynolds, 25, of Parker, had her new daughter via cesarean section at 8:08 a.m. Friday - the eighth day of the eighth month of 2008.

Eight signifies wealth and prosperity to those who observe Chinese numerology. Aug. 8 this year was considered a good day for weddings, the start of the Olympics in Beijing - and births.

"I should maybe go to Vegas now and play all eights," said her father, Keith McReynolds, 31, from the family's room in The Birth Place at Parker Adventist Hospital.

Jessica McReynolds looked tired but happy in her hospital bed, surrounded by family.

"I feel good, a little sore, but other than that, I feel great," she said.

Makayla's birth had been a scheduled operation, but it originally was planned for 9:30 a.m. Friday. But the hospital had a cancellation and offered the McReynolds family the earlier slot.

"All the nurses are very excited, along with the patients," said Donna Pinson, director of The Birth Place. "We thought it would be cool to have the baby born at that time on that date. I think it's awesome."

But the McReynolds said that Makayla was lucky for reasons other than her auspicious birthday. When her brother, William, was born at the same hospital two years ago, he was in fetal distress and had to spend some time in the neonatal intensive care unit.

Watching his son run around his new sister's hospital room like a tow-headed, pint-sized dynamo, Keith McReynolds smiled.

"I'm just glad she's healthy and her mom's healthy," he said.

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