LOVE STORIES
Transpacific love affair culminates with vows
By Tanya Bricking Leach
Advertiser Staff Writer
When Mike Kitching agreed to let his sister crash at his place when she and a friend came to Hawai'i on vacation, Kitching didn't realize his sister was the one doing him the favor.
He came home one day, and Alison Laine was sitting on his couch. He knew almost immediately his sister's friend was the guest he didn't want to get away.
The only problem was distance.
Kitching, 35, was an Air Force pilot living in Kunia. Laine, 26, was a travel agent in Vancouver, British Columbia.
After her vacation, they went back to their routines. Months passed, and nothing happened until they met again in July 2002 at a birthday party for Kitching's brother. That marked the beginning of their long-distance love affair.
Lucky for Laine, her skills as a travel agent helped her find deals to Hawai'i. She overcame her fear of flying by making seven trips across the Pacific to see her favorite pilot. He made trips back to Seattle and Canada, where his family settled in his teen years. And he gave his favorite Canadian the nickname "Smitten Kitten."
By last May, she was ready to test the waters with a six-week trial period together. Kitching passed the test. "We don't really annoy each other," said Laine. "We're kind of from the same mold."
Kitching said while he's serious at work, Laine brings out his happy-go-lucky, goofy side.
"We really understand each other," he said. "We have very similar outlooks on life."
Friends agree. "Every time you see them, they're better together than they are apart," said Michael Parks, who works with Kitching. "They never stop smiling."
Last July, they took a trip to Whistler, British Columbia. One night at an Irish pub, Kitching requested a song and dragged Laine out to dance to Eric Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight." Then, with about 100 people watching, he took the microphone and told Laine to look in her purse. He got down on both knees. Laine fished out a ring box, and he asked her to marry him.
They wed April 3 at the JW Marriott Ihilani Resort at Ko Olina before 53 guests and an empty chair draped with a lei to honor Laine's mother, who died in 2002 of breast cancer.
The bride wore a Vera Wang sheath dress, and the groom faced the beach as she entered, so he wouldn't see her until just before they exchanged vows they wrote themselves.
The bride is now Alison Kitching, and in October, they will move to England for the groom's next assignment. First, he has another surprise for her: a honeymoon next week to a secret destination.
Tanya Bricking Leach writes about relationships for The Advertiser. If you'd like her to tell your love story next, send the details to tbricking@honoluluadvertiser.com or call her at 525-8026.
