A love made complete

WE Team

Featuring Josh Buizon and Thea Panaguiton

Josh and Thea’s story began quietly, almost effortlessly, in the familiar halls of Ateneo de Manila University. Back in college, Josh was in his fourth year and Thea in her third when they were both invited to judge a singing competition for Ateneo’s OrSem, fittingly called “O-idol.”

Introduced backstage, they found themselves talking with an ease that surprised them both. “We hit it off almost immediately,” Thea recalls. “It was so easy to talk to one another.

Their first “date” was nothing grand, just lunch on campus, lingering conversations, and time spent at the Rizal Library where they exchanged numbers. Soon, those simple days became routine. Josh would walk Thea back to her dorm in Katipunan, and they filled their time with shared meals, music gigs, and long conversations.

“It always felt so easy and natural to just be ourselves together,” she shares, a simplicity that quietly anchored their bond.

Nearly a decade later, that same steadiness defined one of the most emotional chapters of their love story. Josh planned to propose on New Year’s Eve of 2024, having already asked for Thea’s parents’ blessing days before. But on Christmas Day, an unexpected vehicular accident left him hospitalized with broken ribs, a fractured wrist, and lung injuries. Still, Josh was determined.

After surgery on December 30 and discharge the following day, he proposed that night at home, simple, intimate, and deeply moving. “I was overwhelmed with gratitude and love,” Thea says.

“It showed me that no matter what life throws at us, we face it together.”

Their wedding ceremony reflected that same depth and intention. After weeks of premarital counseling, Josh and Thea chose an intimate gathering with family and close friends. Sentiment wove its way through every detail, the engagement ring crafted from Josh’s family diamonds, wedding bands made from gold from both their parents. As Thea walked down the aisle, an instrumental version of Over October’s “Ating Dalawa,” re-recorded especially for the day, filled the space.

The reception that followed felt less like a program and more like a heartfelt family dinner. Long tables, warm draping, music, and rain-soaked joy defined the night. “We just enjoyed the moment and had fun together,” Thea says.

“My favorite moments were the simple ones. Looking at each other at the altar, hearing his words, and being surrounded by the people who have seen us grow up and grow together.”, shares Thea.

If she had to describe the day in one word, it would be “complete.”

After almost ten years together, their wedding felt not like a leap into the unknown, but a peaceful, intentional beginning, an ending, and a beginning, beautifully made.