It was adventure that brought together actor Seril James with the debonair Leonard Bonnell, an entertainment executive, and two years later, it would be adventure that blessed their wedding day when two humpback whales marked their union with their majestic breaching. However, it was dedication and deep love that led to this couple tying the knot on January 26, 2019 on the pristine beaches of Maui, Hawaii.
He says: Leonard is from Canada and splits his time between Vancouver and Palm Springs. I am based in Los Angeles, and so began our long and long-distance relationship. In our first year, we had gone back and forth between Los Angeles and Palm Springs, however, when it was time for Leonard to move back to Vancouver, we had a decision to make: keep the relationship casual or make a commitment to each other and grow our relationship regardless of the distance. We opted for the latter, and I began flying up to Vancouver every two weeks to spend the weekends with him.
Proposal One: For my birthday, Leonard took me away for a wonderful week in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. On the last night, we went to dinner at a beautiful open-air restaurant called The Iguana at Casa Kimberly housed in the former home of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. During dessert, a 10-piece mariachi band dressed in all white came over to the table to serenade us. After a beautiful song, the dessert plate was presented and on it was black velvet bag, which contained my ring. He asked, and I said yes!
It is a time-honored tradition for men to propose to women, so as a same-sex couple, there was little to no “obvious” way in which this would play out. After Leonard proposed to me, which was surprising and romantic, I wanted him to have a similar experience, so a month later, I did my own proposal.
Proposal Two: What Leonard did not know at the time was I ALSO was in the midst of planning a proposal to him! Since he beat me to the punch, I needed to plan a different kind of proposal. A month later in Palm Springs, we decided to take a day trip to Joshua Tree National Park. During our hike, I knew there was a campsite that had a boulder in the shape of a heart. It took the help of a compass, but when we found the heart rock, it was as beautiful as it was described. I got down on one knee and popped the question… this time to him!
The Wedding: We decided to have an intimate destination wedding in Maui. We spent a week at the beautiful Andaz Maui Resort in the Wailea area before our guests arrived. The day before the wedding, my parents hosted a welcome luncheon at The Mill House Restaurant, a stunning property that was once a sugarcane plantation. We loved this venue as it reminded us of Kerala, where my family is from.
We held our ceremony the next day on Palauea Beach in Wailea. Hawaiian sunsets are known to be some of the world’s best, and we were lucky to get one as the backdrop to our intimate ceremony. We had a wonderful Hawaiian minister, a guitarist to set the mood and a close group of loving family and friends. We had some special surprise guests as well—WHALES!–who were waving us on as we got married. A champagne toast followed the ceremony as we watched the beautiful glow of the sun setting. Our reception dinner was held at the gorgeous Hotel Wailea where the restaurant is nestled in the hills of the island. It was the perfect way to mark our union.
Photographer: Sean M. Hower
