Love Story: Jeni and Todd Westby

Published 9:36 pm Tuesday, November 6, 2007

It all started on the Internet in October 1996, when Jeni van der Merwe went online.

She was logging on from Cape Town, South Africa, and hoping to connect romantically with someone.

Jeni picked out a few guys, but put an A-plus mark next to Todd Westby’s name.

“He just said he was a teddy bear and that he liked walks on the beach,” Jeni said. “He didn’t smoke or drink and was a Christian.”

A trip to Calgary, Alberta, in January 1997 took Jeni close to Washington state, where she could meet Todd and see if he was the A-plus guy she had imagined.

“Todd knew before I even came out here that I was the one,” Jeni said.

Jeni, however, was uncertain after their first meeting, believing they would not be more than friends. But four days later when Todd asked Jeni for a hug, something happened.

“It was as if a veil lifted from my eyes,” Jeni said. “All of a sudden, he was the one.”

Jeni and Todd Westby of Marysville recently celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary with a movie and dinner date.

The couple were married Nov. 1, 1997, at Shoreline Community Church in Shoreline.

They have three children.

When Jeni realized that Todd was the man she had been waiting for, she returned to South Africa to tie up loose ends. She had planned to come back to the United States in June or July, but a paperwork problem required her to apply for a new visa two weeks before she was supposed to arrive.

“I came in October,” Jeni said.

Jeni and Todd lived in Lynnwood after they got married and moved to Marysville a year and a half later.

When Jeni describes Todd, she says he is patient and kind, and if she is mad about something he will give her space, then ask to talk about it.

“I won’t want to deal with it,” Jeni said. “He does.”

Todd is gentle and warm, even if scuba diving is all he talks about right now. What you see is what you get, and all Jeni’s friends love Todd, she said.

As far as being a father is concerned, Jeni couldn’t have asked for a better man, she said.

“It’s amazing. He is so patient,” Jeni said. “He does homework with the kids and puts them to bed at night.”

Jeni said Todd was worth the wait. She was 32 when the couple got married.

Todd indeed turned out to be the teddy bear he first described himself to be on the Internet, Jeni said. She thanks him for being who he is.

“And for making this the best life that I could ever have dreamed of,” Jeni said. “Even through the hard times.”

For information on Love Story and Celebrations, contact Christina Harper at 425-339-3491 or harper@heraldnet.com.