Vas & Julia - Our Destination Wedding

Dima is Vas's best friend of many years and also a very good friend of Julia's. Julia met him first her sophomore year in high school where the two had gym class together. Dima recently graduated from the University of Iowa with a Bachelor in Chemistry and minors in Biology and Psychology. He is now a medical student at the Des Moines University of Osteopathic Medicine and is living in West Des Moines, IA.

Julia and Vasiliy met Tanya at Iowa State University in a mutual class the three had together and both of them liked her instantly! Tanya graduated from ISU with a triple major in Marketing, International Business, and Russian Studies in the spring of 2008. She is currently living in Beloit, WI and is working as a Quality Operations Manager at Frito Lay.

Tanya and Julia met when they were 9 & 10 yrs. old at the time at Camp Shalom the first summer Tanya moved to the U.S. They became best friends instantly & have now been friends for almost 13 years (more than half of their lifetimes). Tanya is also a good friend of Vasiliy's from high school. Tanya is currently finishing up her Kinesiology and Health major and Russian Studies minor at Iowa State University. She recently got married to her husband, Aaron Hamel, they are expecting a baby in May of 2009!

Sveta & Julia have known each other most of their lives because of their mothers who have been best friends since the young age of 6. Sveta currently lives in Wayne, NJ and is a sophomore at Rutgers University. Vas & Julia recently visited Sveta in this past summer of '08.

Vasiliy's and Julia's good mutual friend who is currently living in Iowa City and is finishing up his Interdepartmental Business degree at the University of Iowa. Julia & Gene have been close friends since they were little kids back in WDM. Gene's currently working as a Resident Assistant in the Mayflower dorm in Iowa City. He will be graduation from U of I in the spring of 2009.

Vas's good friend from childhood in West Des Moines, IA. He's currently a grad student in law school at the University of Iowa and will be working on his law degree over the next three years while living in Iowa City. His hobbies include cars, airsoft, and motorcycle rides on sunny days.

Vas's cousin & good friend from childhood who is currently residing in Bogota, Colombia working as a financial associate. He recently graduated from Wharton Business School with a Finance major and lived in New York City prior to moving to Colombia.

Julia's family currently lives in West Des Moines and has been residing there for the past 16.5 years. They emigrated from Kiev, Ukraine in June of 1992 to West Des Moines, IA where they started a new life. Her family includes her mother Irina, her father Gregory, her grandmothers Geeta & Rimma, & her adorable Maltese puppy Lily :o)

Vas's family includes his mother, Svetlana, his father, Igor, & his 2 cats, Alissa and Benji. His family has been living in West Des Moines since they moved there in August of 1996. His grandmother and uncle still currently reside in a small village, Orefina, in Russia where his mother grew up.