But when their vacations came to a close, reality set in. Ms. Dopp was returning to Buffalo, where she was between jobs at the time, and Mr. MacDonald to Calgary, Alberta, where he lived and worked as a firefighter with the Rocky View County Fire Department.

As they exchanged tearful goodbyes in Mexico, said Mr. MacDonald, who handed her a Canadian one-dollar coin called a loonie.

The coins had become a symbol of good luck in his country ever since the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, when a Canadian worker placed one under the ice of the Olympic hockey rink ahead of the games, and both the Canadian women's and men's hockey teams later won gold medals.

When he gave the loonie to Ms. Dopp, Mr. MacDonald said.

On every visit, Ms. Dopp also received a new loonie from Mr. MacDonald.

In late December 2019, the couple went to New York City to celebrate New Year's Eve with some friends. On the morning of Dec. 28, they were ice skating at Rockefeller Center when Mr. MacDonald surprised Ms. Dopp by proposing on the rink. As people around them began clapping and taking photos, their friends, whom he had tipped off ahead of time, showed up to join in the celebration.

Mr. MacDonald said of Ms. Dopp accepting his proposal.

On Jan. 21, they were married at the office of the city clerk in Tonawanda, N.Y., and on Jan. 28, they held a second wedding celebration at Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach Golf & Spa resort in Cabo San Lucas.

To read the complete article, see:
Those Lucky Coins Paid Off(https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/11/style/kelly-macdonald-ashleigh-dopp-wedding.html)

To read an earlier E-Sylum article, see:
LOONIE DESIGNER ROBERT-RALPH CARMICHAEL, 1937 - 2016(https://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v19n30a13.html)