Woman Had A Suspicion About Her Future Son-In-Law, Then Her Photo Album Confirms It
Some people search for love throughout their entire lives. In 2011, Heidi Parker and Ed Savitt became one of the lucky ones. The two met in college and soon knew they were destined to be together. But when Heidi's mother saw her fiance, she was reminded of a particular memory.
Heidi and Ed's story has made international headlines as a seemingly impossible story. Learn what the internet is freaking out about by following their journey.
Heidi Parker's College Adventure
In 2011, 18-year-old Heidi Parker left her home of Sheffield, South Yorkshire to head to New Castle University. She moved to Bodrum to pursue her major in Economics and Business Management. Her parents, Kay and Keith Parker, traveled to the university to help her move in.
During her first year, Heidi lived in a student house with her classmates. The girls had fun there, but when Heidi moved out, her life changed forever.
Her Move-In Encounter
Eventually, Heidi moved out of her housing and into an off-campus apartment. As she moved out, a group of guys also moved in. Heidi noticed one man; as she described it, "We just spotted each other." The two spoke briefly before they parted ways.
Heidi admitted that she "forgot about him" until later. In the hustle-and-bustle, the two forgot to exchange names. But Heidi would end up seeing him later.
She May Have Forgotten, But He Didn't
Heidi moved into a new apartment that was far from campus. As she adjusted to her new abode, she kept in touch about her day to day with her mother, Kay. She also began her new school year as any student would.
Just a week after moving in, however, she received a peculiar Facebook message. The sender wasn't on her friends list, but she decided to answer it anyway because she recognized him.
One Facebook Message Changed Her Life
The person who Facebooked Heidi was named Ed Savitt. He was the same person who talked to her as he moved into her previous flat. Ed couldn't figure out how the tumble drier worked. After finding Heidi's name on some mail, he decided to message her.
Heidi, who vaguely remembered the stranger, decided to head over to her old room to help him. She later admitted that she "let him know...basically because he was hot."
Hitting It Off Over Laundry
Heidi fulfilled her promise by visiting Ed's place. She later said, "We got chatting and hit it off pretty much instantly." The two immediately realized that they had similar interests. Ed, who was from London, majored in Business and Psychology. He also adored sports as Heidi did.
Although Heidi didn't know it at the time, Ed was head over heels for her. They both enjoyed each other so much that they decided to meet again later. And this time, it wouldn't be over laundry.
Their Relationship Grew Quickly
Ed and Heidi continued to get together more and more often. Their friendship quickly advanced into a relationship, and the pair couldn't be happier. Since they were attached at the hip, their university friends called them "college sweethearts."
"I thought he was gorgeous," Heidi said in a later interview. "I thought he was actually amazing. All I can remember thinking is, 'Wow, he is hot.'" Although she may not have known, Ed was thinking the same thing.
Now, They're In It For The Long Run
Heidi kept her parents in touch about her and Ed's relationship. At first, her mother, Kay, worried about their fast attachment. But as four years flew by, it became clear that Heidi and Ed were in it for the long run.
After Ed and Heidi graduated, they remained together. They rented an apartment in Wandsworth, London. With similar goals and a strong relationship, they embarked on finding new jobs together.
How Four Years Became Forever
After college, Heidi and Ed remained together. Heidi worked as a PR Manager at Sony Interactive Entertainment, while Ed worked to open his own business, DropShot Coffee. Even as recent college graduates, the two were quite successful living on their own.
In 2015, Ed finally popped the question. It became official that the couple took their relationship seriously. "We knew we were going to be together forever," Heidi later said.
At Last, Their Mothers Meet
After Ed and Heidi got engaged, they decided to celebrate with their families. They invited both of their mothers to their apartment in southwest London. The two had never met each other before.
As with any new couple, Heidi and Ed were nervous about their parents' meeting. But their mothers quickly bonded as they celebrated the engagement. Ed's mother, Fiona, shared Kay Parker's love of sailing. They soon began sharing family stories.
Their Family Vacations Were Quite Similar...
As expected, the couple's parents began sharing their childhood stories. Like many British families, the Parkers spent many vacations in the Mediterranean region. Fiona confirmed that her family also traveled abroad during the holidays and enjoyed being along the water.
Naturally, Kay and Fiona shared several experiences from their similar family holidays. But one story stood out in particular, and it ended up bothering both mothers for some time, trying to figure it out.
...Almost Too Similar
According to Heidi, the two mothers were sharing stories. Then "out of nowhere," Kay told her daughter Heidi, "When you were on holiday in Turkey, and you were little, you had a little boyfriend called Ed."
Kay shared that in 1997, the Parker family took a two-week vacation in Gumbet. There, Heidi befriended another six-year-old boy. The two held hands throughout the holiday and called each other "boyfriend and girlfriend."
What Began As A Fun Story Soon Turned Eerie
Fiona was fascinated by the story. She and her family visited Turkey around the same time. The eeriness of this tale made everyone at the dinner feel uneasy. Although the story was strange, the family dinner soon moved on to a different topic.
Both mothers wrote the story off as a wild coincidence. Heidi and Ed clarified that they wanted to marry by the end of the year, to which both parents agreed.
Was It Just A Coincidence?
After the dinner, the families departed and returned to their busy lives. With a wedding rapidly approaching, both families had a lot of work to do.
However, Kay couldn't get the strange coincidence out of her mind. A few days after the dinner, she called Fiona to talk about it. Fiona had also pondered the mystery. They agreed that there might have been more to the story than they had thought.
...Or Was It More Than That?
As Kay and Fiona spoke, nothing more came up. The two brushed the story off as a coincidence. She hung up, unaware of the life-changing revelation they had stumbled upon.
Two weeks later, Kay made an impulsive decision. She decided to clean through her attic to make room for wedding supplies. As she rummaged through her belongings, she threw away and reorganized family items. That's when she stumbled upon a dusty photo album.
Finally--The Photo Album
Kay had found a photo album from the year 1997. She couldn't believe it; she had stumbled upon the same year that she and Fiona talked about weeks prior. The album contained photographs of her family vacation in Turkey.
Kay flipped through to July of 1997. She found a picture of Heidi in her bathing suit next to a young blonde boy. Immediately, Kay recognized the boy. She understood that this was more than just a coincidence.
The Couple Met Many Years Before
Kay immediately called Fiona. She revealed that Fiona's son, Ed, was the young boy who held hands with Heidi in Turkey. "I was screaming," Kay Parker recalled. "It was just unreal."
After the call, Kay sent Fiona her photo of a little boy called Ed. Fiona confirmed that this boy was Ed Savitt, Heidi's future fiance. They had no idea that the couple met 14 years before their encounter at university.
More Photos Emerge
"When Kay sent me the photo of a little boy called Ed, I shrieked," Fiona later said. "'Oh my goodness, that's Ed!' It was unbelievable." Immediately after, Fiona rummaged through her photo albums. Sure enough, Heidi appeared in the Savitt family albums, smiling and holding hands with Ed.
Fiona uncovered five more photos of Ed and Heidi. She noticed that the couple's siblings also played together during the vacation. Both of their families had met, and nobody knew.
How Did The Couple React?
Kay Parker sent the photo to her daughter. When Heidi received it, she immediately recognized Ed. "I was so shocked [that] I actually had to lie down," Heidi later said. "Ed was amazed too...we couldn't believe it."
Heidi called her mother, practically screaming. "I just yelled, 'Mum--you know who that is!'" Heidi said. Not only had the couple met earlier in life, but their siblings and parents had also met earlier, too.
How Do They Celebrate? By Mirroring The Photo
Ed and Heidi's families recommended that the two mirror the picture for their wedding invitations. The couple bought similar swimsuits and posed in the way they did as six-year-olds. After they posted the comparison to Facebook, it quickly went viral.
"None of us had any idea whatsoever that Heidi and Ed had met before university," Kay said. "But during that two-week holiday, they held hands most of the time."
And No, They Didn't Remember It
"I have no memory of meeting Ed as a child," Heidi said. "But from the photos, we had been spending an awful lot of time together while we were on holiday."
Despite not remembering, the discovery only deepened Ed and Heidi's relationship. "It's crazy to think we could have gotten married, shared our lives together, but then never found out about this," Heidi continued. It was truly a unique situation.
Were They Destined To Be Together?
Kay Parker believed that Ed and Heidi's initial meeting sparked their former friendship. "Perhaps they just had a subconscious realization they had shared that time together when they met as adults," she said.
Heidi agreed with her mother. "I didn't believe in fate before finding that out, but there's no arguing with it--we're clearly destined to be together!" she exclaimed. "From the moment we started dating, we were inseparable, and knew we were going to be together forever."
Now, They'll Always Stay Together
In the summer of 2016, the star-crossed lovers finally married. Ed and Heidi exchanged vows in a 12th-century castle in Derbyshire. The setting reflected their long relationship that blossomed at age six.
The wedding was beautiful, and both families got along swimmingly. The two sets of parents, Jonathon and Fiona Savitt and Kay and Keith Parker, planned vacations together. It was a night that both family and guests would never forget.
Their "Movie Plot" Wedding Story
After their wedding, Ed and Heidi vacationed in the Maldives. They got to tell plenty of people about their fantastical story. "It was brilliant," Heidi reported. "We love telling people how we met twice."
Since their story went viral, Heidi and Ed have received plenty of ecstatic responses. "People keep telling us that it must be fate and that it's like the plot of a movie!" Heidi added. It seemed too good to be true.
Ed And Heidi Now
Today, Ed's coffee shop, DropShot Coffee, is now open in Southfields, London. The couple is happily married and still living in Ed's home city.
In 2019, the couple returned to their university town of Bodrum. "It was really exciting to go back to where the miracle began," Heidi said. The knowledge of their past only made their relationship stronger. However, they're comforted with the knowledge that even without the coincidence, they decided to live together forever.
