Featuring Adrian Dulalia Pe and Pao Benoza
In 2019, what began as a student government campaign at the Ateneo Graduate School of Business quietly unfolded into a love story neither Adrian and Pao expected.
They were simply teammates then, running under the same party, attending late-night planning sessions, sharing rides, and laughing over the most random campaign mishaps.
“Somewhere between printing materials and talking strategy, we genuinely started to enjoy each other’s company,” Pao recalls.
Short, friendly messages soon turned into late-night conversations, the kind that reveal values, dreams, and hidden parts of one’s heart. When Adrian finally asked her out to dinner at Soban in Greenbelt, everything felt effortless. No awkward pauses, no pretenses, just two people discovering how naturally their worlds fit together. “By the end of that night, it felt like something meaningful had started,” she says.
Years later, after a pandemic and countless memories, their promise to travel brought them to Coron in 2023, where the next chapter of their story would unfold. Adrian planned to propose at Kayangan Lake, but high tides made the moment impossible.
At Twin Lagoon, after a drizzle-filled wait, the sun finally peeked out. Their photographer asked Pao to turn around for a shot. When she faced the camera again, Adrian stood there, emotional, ready, holding the ring. “It was imperfectly perfect,” she shares. “Everything felt surreal.”
Their wedding carried that same energy, deeply personal, intentional, and overflowing with love. Pao walked down the aisle carrying the ashes of Papa Badoy close to her heart, wrapped in a necklace around her bouquet.
“I carried his ashes in a necklace wrapped around my bouquet, a quiet reminder of someone who played a big, formative role in my life when I was younger. Knowing he was symbolically with me that day brought a sense of comfort and completeness.”, shares Pao.
A uniquely large group of principal sponsors, all chosen for their individual significance, surrounded them, along with 13 pairs of bridesmaids and groomsmen representing life’s many chapters.
The reception, timeless in white and elegance, was alive from the moment the doors opened. Guests danced even before the program began, setting a joyful tone. Loved ones sang, honored them with stories, and filled the room with warmth. One touching moment was when Adrian offered flowers to his father, and Pao gifted her bouquet to her mother, a quiet testament to the love that raised them.
Despite being a Monday wedding, nearly every guest stayed from the ceremony to the last dance. “It felt like an emotional roller coaster in the best way,” Pao shares.
If they had to describe their day in one word? Surreal. From that first glance down the aisle to the final embrace of family and friends, it was a celebration bigger than anything they imagined, yet exactly how it was meant to be.
Adrian and Pao’s Dream Team:
Church: St. John Bosco Parish Makati
Ceremony and Reception: Okada Manila
Coordinator: Roch Chua Events by the Planner
Cake: Ysabel’s Confectionary
Invites: Ink Scribbler
Event Stylist: MC Pascual Curated Events
Photographer: Erron Ocampo at Metrophoto
Videographer: Studio King
Pre-Nuptial Videographer: Pragma Studios
Gown designer: Banggo Niu
Suit designer: Felipe and Sons
Lights and Sounds: Blackbox Audio Systems
HMUA: Belle.doesmakeup & Riri Wu Makeup Artistry
Grazing Table: Cocktails Manila
Band: Project M Acoustics
Photobooth: Marlly Photobooth
Photo Studio: Pao Larawan
Mobile Bar: Sebastiao Cocktails
Wedding Rings: La Maria Fine Jewelry
Host: Adrian “Chris Tsuper” Policena
Souvenir: Caricatures by Krystina Bogus
