Two West Lothian love birds have agreed to tie the knot after a courageous faincé bent down on one knee to ask his partner to marry him atop of the iconic Forth Bridge.
The soon to be wife, Meghan Crawford, 38, was surprised by her new groom, Paul Ward, 44, when he whipped out a glittering ring when on top of the bridge. The pair from Uphall were part of a group that were taking part in a charity event organised by Barnardos.
Smitten Meghan had decided to treat Paul to tickets for the climb on Sunday 25 but she was taken aback when he asked her to be his wife at the ‘Your View’ event.
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Meghan said: “We had our first date in South Queensferry, and I thought the Forth Bridge visit would be a nice trip to do together.
“When we got to the top, Paul handed his phone to a volunteer and asked them to take some photos of us admiring the view, and when I turned around, he was on one knee! There was a professional photographer who did some great photos for us and as we came back down and out of the lift, the volunteers all did a guard of honour and were clapping and cheering.
“It was absolutely lovely, and we can’t thank all the people from Barnardo’s, Network Rail, Balfour Beatty and the rest of the crew enough, as they made everything so special for us.”
Keeping the romance going into the evening, Paul had organised for champagne to be waiting on ice for a special dinner and a nights stay at a hotel in South Queensferry, where their room coincidentally had a smashing view of the bridge, the Daily Record reports.
The ‘Your View’ event is now in its fourth year and has been organised by Network Rail, Balfour Beatty, The Briggers and Barnardo’s Scotland. Unbelievably, Meghan and Paul are the fourth couple to become engaged during this period.
The fundraising event gave visitors the chance to stand atop the iconic Forth Bridge and enjoy uninterrupted views of the Edinburgh and Fife coastline, raising funds for Barnardo’s Scotland.
Around 750 visitors were welcomed to the experience throughout the weekend, with more than 40 volunteers from Network Rail, Balfour Beatty, The Briggers and Barnardo’s Scotland working to run the event behind the scenes.
Martin Crewe, Director for Barnardo’s Scotland said: “We simply could not be more grateful to Network Rail, Balfour Beatty and The Briggers for all their support in making this event happen, and for the many volunteers from these organisations, Barnardo’s and others, working tirelessly behind the scenes all weekend to keep everything running.
“They helped to create such a memorable experience for members of the public, including for Meghan and Paul, and we wish this couple every happiness for the future.
“We would also like to say a huge thank you to everyone that purchased tickets to come and take part in this event – we have received some great feedback and hope that a fantastic time was had by all. The valuable funds raised will go towards Barnardo’s hardship fund, which will be providing direct support to struggling families across Scotland this winter to help with food and energy bills.”
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