COUPLE WITH TIES TO TITANIC TO WED AMONG ARTIFACTS
By Carrie Antlfinger

The Associated Press State & Local Wire
May 10, 2009 Sunday 4:43 PM GMT

A couple with a special connection to the Titanic plan to marry among
the ship’s artifacts at the Milwaukee Public Museum.

Melissa Vartanian, 28, and Vache Mikaelian, 31, will wed Friday at
"Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition."

Melissa Vartanian’s great-grandfather, David Vartanian, was fleeing
Turkish occupation in Armenia when he boarded the Titanic. He planned
to later send for his new bride, Mary.

When the Titanic sank on April 15, 1912 Vartanian’s 22nd birthday
he survived by hanging on the side of a lifeboat. It took him about
six years after he recovered to find his wife by searching through
newspapers, churches, orphanages and sending numerous letters to
Armenia, Melissa Vartanian said. Then it took another five or so
years for the couple to be reunited.

Melissa Vartanian said her great-grandparents died before she was
born, but she grew up hearing about their story, which she called
"the greatest love story I’ve ever known."

"This is amazing," she said. "This would be a great tribute to this
amazing love story and great tribute for my family."

Viewers picked the couple as the winners of a wedding contest run by
WTMJ-TV and its morning talk show. The television station paid for
the rehearsal dinner, =0 Areception, honeymoon, bride’s dress and
other costs.

About 1,500 people died when the so-called "unsinkable" ship sank
after striking an iceberg on its maiden voyage across the Atlantic
Ocean in 1912. The Milwaukee exhibit runs until May 25.

Visitors receive boarding passes for someone who was on the ship, along
with some biographical information, and at the end of the exhibit,
they learn whether their person survived. David Vartanian’s boarding
pass will be included in the wedding programs for their 100 guests,
Melissa Vartanian said.

The rehearsal dinner also will have a Titanic theme. A local restaurant
will provide a four-course dinner once served on the ship beef
consommé, oysters, filet mignon and Waldorf pudding.

Vartanian said she and her fiance have visited the Milwaukee exhibit
along with other Titanic exhibits in other cities. She said some people
might think it’s a bad omen to get married among Titanic memorabilia,
but she doesn’t.

"The Titanic doesn’t symbolize death and destruction," she said. "It
was a journey toward a better life, even though it had challenges."