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Fox 5’s Roby Chavez and partner Chris Roe to marry after navigating the wedding planning process

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Roby Chavez and his partner Chris Roe meet with their wedding planner and caterer at the Woodrow Wilson House in Washington on Aug. 6. They're getting married there this weekend. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

When Washingtonians Roby Chavez and Chris Roe decided to get married in December, there was no hesitation. Figuring out how to go about it, though, required months of thought and planning.

“This has been a bit of a struggle throughout the whole process,” said Chavez, 46, a reporter for Fox 5 news. “How much of the tradition do you jump on and how much of your own do you make up because as a gay community this is also new, so we don’t really know what a tradition is for us. So we’ve been kind of trying to figure out what other people might want to duplicate, what things are individual for us.”

Even basics like engagement rings, required thought. Roe, 45, didn’t get one before he proposed the night same-sex marriage was legalized in the District in December. He popped the question just before Chavez was due on the air covering the story for Fox.

“I’d been watching the news and the whole community, well, at least the whole gay community, was really amped,” Roe says. “I just felt the spirit and said this is what I’m gonna do. The ring came later.”

As a lark, the two got large, gaudy costume rings — Roe’s green, Chavez’s yellow — for a few weeks before picking out their wedding bands last weekend.

The two met at a Memorial Day party through mutual friends in 2005. Roe is from a family of farmers and teachers in Monticello, Wis., but had been in the San Francisco area for about 10 years. He eventually accepted a position working in education policy for the non-profit Business High Education Forum.

Chavez, born in Denver but raised mostly in Matthews, La., ended up in Washington “as a fluke” after stints in TV journalism in Atlanta, New York and Dallas.

They say it was love at first sight though they didn’t immediately start dating.

“I told him when I first met him, ‘You’re the one,'” Chavez says. “I don’t know, there was just something about him. They say you know. And it’s not really my style to do that. I’m not the kind of person who will confess my love automatically but I did. There was just a genuine sense of his being and I liked that. I just remember a nice hug he gave me and it was good.”

Roe says he felt the same.

“I thought it was unusual but I felt very similarly. I just tend to be more reserved and more shy than he is. I was freaked out a little but I also felt that connection as well.”

The couple was affectionate during a break in wedding planning at the Wilson House two weeks ago. Sitting at a makeshift table in the dining room so as not to sully the antique-filled home of the former president, Chavez and Roe sit close. They’re both trim and well dressed. They look at each other and giggle at the most innocuous questions.

“We started out thinking intimate and small but then we realized our lives aren’t that small,” Chavez says. “Just with our immediate family and friends, we got to about 200 people just in that. So it’s a little bigger.”

They’re planning an outdoor ceremony on the Wilson House grounds. Rev. Dwayne Johnson, pastor of Metropolitan Community Church of Washington where Chavez sometimes attends, will officiate. Their nieces and nephews will wave rainbow ribbons and a surprise entertainer will perform while two “best couples,” gay couples who have been friends of the two for years, will stand with them as they take their vows wearing matching Calvin Klein tuxes. A honeymoon trip to Greece will follow.

Rob Clemenz has known Chavez since they were in college together. He and his partner, Rick DuPlantier, are in the wedding party.

“When I first laid eyes on Chris, I knew he was perfect for Roby,” Clemenz says. “I know this really means the world for Roby so it’s very poignant and it’s just a special thing. I never ever dreamed that we would come this far and something like this would be in our lifetimes. I’m beyond happy standing there for their wedding. It’s just wonderful.”

Chavez says he didn’t call Roe immediately after meeting him because, despite the strong initial connection, dating wasn’t on his radar. He’d been career focused for many years but finally decided to take some time off for dating.

“I had three phone numbers,” Chavez says. “He was the second date. I never made it to the third.”

They live together at 12th and U streets, N.W., and make time for each other, despite disparate work schedules — Roe works days, Chavez nights. Roe waits up for Chavez every night until he gets home around midnight. Chavez promised Roe if he moved in with him — farther from his job than he’d been — he’d give him a lift to work each day, a promise he’s kept.

So what makes it work? Chavez calls it “the brake and the pedal.”

“I’m kind of all over the place and moving very quickly,” he says. “He’s very methodical and thoughtful. When I’m going too fast, he puts the brakes on and when he’s not going fast enough, I kind of push him along. We’ve just kind of learned how to connect.”

They also say the small-town values they grew up with are complementary. And they get a kick out of hearing a pop song from the ’80s and realizing they both know the lyrics.

There’s only the slightest acknowledgment of occasional friction during a 40-minute interview. They read together at night and on the way to work. Chavez mentions a couple relationship books they’ve used to help through occasional “issues in the relationship.”

“Ultimately we just talk,” he says. “We talk a lot. We have 30 minutes here or there or at night, we talk.”

Chavez says the marriage gives him a chance to turn the tables on his viewers. Getty Images photographers have followed them through the planning process.

“I knock on people’s doors all the time,” he says. “Tell me your happiness, tell me your sadness, tell me what’s going on in your life. I should be able to share with the same openness. Plus we don’t see a lot of people talking about gay marriage. I just thought I’m not gonna miss a chance to let them hear my story. It would be easier, actually, to just do it privately, but I feel I have a responsibility.”

The chance to play it big and include extended family, who have been supportive, they say, was strategic in a way.

“They’re the people who’ll have to vote the next time it comes up on the ballot,” Roe says.

Clemenz says it’s about more than the couple.

“This is so much more than a mere marriage,” he says. “It’s a symbolic leap of faith for the progress and the edification of D.C. and really for the nation. It’s thought provoking and it’s provocative. Roby’s stood up time and time again in his life. He’s a true leader.”

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Real Estate

Don’t procrastinate buying your home

Some experts predict rates will fall in June

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Spring is in the air and it’s a great time to buy a new home.

As springtime fills the air, cherry blossoms are blooming, much of the year still lies ahead and many have started to think about how they are progressing with their 2024 goals. If the dream of buying a house was put on hold when the interest rates went from 3% to almost 8%, and life got in the way of an idea that had gotten onto your to-do list, maybe now is the time to dust it off. 

Mortgage lender Tina Del Casale from Sandy Spring Bank says, “There is still hope the Fed will be happy with inflation numbers by June to finally pull the trigger on lowering interest rates.”  

The rates might not be as low as they were in 2021, but historically, they are still not as high as they were 20 years ago. Some people’s parents remember getting interest rates that were 12%, 14% or even higher.   

One of the biggest questions I get at homebuyer seminars is about is the process. What is buying a house ACTUALLY like?  I usually tell them that it’s like anything else. One step at a time. One form at a time. One bank transfer at a time. One house showing at a time. One home inspection at a time. If you have the wherewithal to plan a vacation, you can buy a house. 

  • Finding a Realtor
  • Finding a lender to get pre-approved (how much is your budget and what is a comfortable monthly payment)
  • Are there any first-time buyer programs that could be used? Is there down payment assistance?
  • Looking at the houses.
  • Finding one you like, and putting an offer together:
    • An offer usually involves a sales contract, any special forms that the jurisdictions require (lead-based paint acknowledgements, what appliances and systems in the house are included/excluded, if the home is part of a homeowners association, or a condo association, etc.)
    • Any forms related to getting an inspection done.
    • Who is selling the house, who is buying the house, how much is it being sold for, where it is exactly, and who are the others involved in the transaction (title company, agents, etc.)?
  • Getting any inspections done.
  • Negotiating any changes in the sales price or terms, or credits for inspection items.
  • Getting the final approval for the loan and then going to settlement.

Many people get interested in buying a house, but the “unknown” of it all can be daunting. It could be that the best way to think about it, is that like most things in life, you can’t cross every bridge BEFORE you get there. You just take it one day at a time. Some things will be surprisingly easy. Some things will require the advice of experienced lenders, Realtors, home inspectors and title attorneys.  

But if the process doesn’t begin somewhere, somehow, the idea just stays in one’s head in the “to do list” file.  And then 3 years go by, 5 years go by, 7 years go by. And your friends that DID buy a house laugh themselves to the bank when they go to sell the house they bought 3 years ago, 5 years ago, or 7 years ago.

If you need any recommendations for a local lender or Realtor, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Joseph Hudson is a referral agent with Metro Referrals. Reach him at [email protected] or 703-587-0597.

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Advice

Giving up drinking is killing our relationship

What happens when one partner is sober and the other isn’t

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I’m a 38-year-old guy, was single for most of my 30s, which I didn’t like at all, and I finally met a great guy last Memorial Day Weekend. 

Until New Year’s I would have said that everything was going great. I was on Cloud Nine. Eric is kind, handsome, smart, and a great catch.

But in December he decided to do “Dry January.” It was kind of on a whim I think. We were out with some friends and one of them said he was not going to drink at all for the month of January. He thought alcohol was playing too big a role in his life so he wanted to see what life would be like without it. Another friend said he would do it too, and then Eric said he would.

I wish we hadn’t gone out that night and then this whole thing wouldn’t have happened.

So, as the month progressed, Eric started talking more and more about how much better he was feeling without alcohol in his body or his life.

I don’t think we drank that much pre-January. Yes, we’d have something to drink every time we went out, with friends or just together, but not to excess.

At some point, Eric started saying that he wasn’t really enjoying going out with our friends, as he wasn’t drinking and they were (except the two friends who were also doing the Dry January thing). This meant I’d either go out without him (which I didn’t like) or we’d stay home, or go out just the two of us. But then if I’m drinking and he’s not, it just feels awkward. He hasn’t said anything but I feel like he’s judging me whenever I have a drink.

I was hoping he’d relax about the whole thing at the end of the month but now he’s decided he doesn’t want to drink anymore at all.

To make matters worse, he says that the month made him think more about the big role alcohol plays in his life (his words) and he has started going to Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.

So where does this leave me? I do want to keep drinking. I’m just a social drinker and I don’t have a problem with alcohol. I think it adds a fair amount of fun to my life. Plus, all my friends drink (including the two who did Dry January) and it’s a big part of our socializing. If you don’t drink when everyone else is drinking, it’s really not fun and it feels weird.

At this point Eric doesn’t go out with the friend group we were going out with because he doesn’t have a good time as the only non-drinker. (I get it, that’s one of the reasons I drink when my friends are drinking.) So I go out sometimes without him, which as I mentioned doesn’t feel so good, and which I don’t think is great for our relationship; or I don’t go out with my friends, which I don’t like.

I love Eric and I could see us having a great life together but his not drinking has opened what feels like a chasm between us.

How do couples handle this situation, where one person wants to stop drinking and the other does not? The impact is seeming increasingly huge to me and I don’t see how to make it stop being a divisive problem.

Michael replies:

I don’t think that Eric’s sobriety needs to be a divisive problem, if you can tolerate that you don’t get to have your life with Eric be exactly as you would like. 

This is the same dilemma that everyone in a serious relationship must face. Our partners are always different from us in some important ways, even if it doesn’t seem that way at first. And we have to figure out how to live with these differences, contentedly for the most part.  Our partners face the same challenge. 

Of course, not every difference can be (or should be) resolvable. For example, if one person is determined to parent and the other person is determined to be child-free, it makes great sense to part ways — unless one person decides they’d rather stay with their partner than have it their way.  

You and Eric have to figure out if your differences around alcohol are a deal-breaker, or if you can find a way to build a solid relationship, even as you drink socially and he is sober.

Whether and how you do this are for the two of you to figure out.  That said, here are some ideas for your consideration: 

  • Can you accept Eric’s not joining you for some or even many of your social activities?
  • Can you and Eric talk about what might help him be more comfortable joining your friends now and then?
  • Can you ask Eric what it’s like for him when you are drinking, rather than assuming that he is judging you? (Important question for your consideration: What led you to make that assumption rather than asking him?)
  • If Eric is making friends in Alcoholics Anonymous, would you want to join him at times when he socializes with them? 

The main ingredients here are generosity, flexibility, collaboration, and curiosity.

Speaking of curiosity, rather than wishing that the two of you had missed that invitation to participate in Dry January, how about being curious about Eric’s decision to stop drinking? I suspect that your dismissiveness has a negative impact on his desire to be close to or confide in you. If you are curious about this important life change that Eric is undertaking, you will certainly learn a lot about your boyfriend, and likely deepen your connection.

Michael Radkowsky, Psy.D. is a licensed psychologist who works with couples and individuals in D.C. He can be found online at michaelradkowsky.com. All identifying information has been changed for reasons of confidentiality. Have a question? Send it to [email protected].

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Real Estate

Down payment strategies: Financing your home purchase 

Understanding the options key to unlocking the door to a dream home

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Looking for your dream home? First, you need to understand how to make the down payment.

Navigating the path to homeownership can be a complex journey, especially when it comes to accumulating the necessary down payment. For members of our LGBTQ community, understanding the available options for saving and financing this crucial aspect of home buying is key to unlocking the door to their dream home. Let’s explore effective methods and resources specifically designed to support LGBTQ individuals on their path to homeownership.

Traditional Savings Strategies

Saving for a down payment often begins with traditional methods such as setting aside a portion of your income into a dedicated savings account. High-yield savings accounts and automated savings plans, some offering up to 5% interest in today’s market, can expedite the process, providing a disciplined approach to accumulate funds over time. Additionally, exploring investment opportunities that match your risk tolerance can offer potential growth for your down payment savings.

Down Payment Assistance Programs

A variety of down payment assistance programs exist to help homebuyers with their initial costs. These programs often offer grants or low-interest loans to first-time homebuyers or those who haven’t owned a home in the past three years. 

It’s essential to speak with a GayRealEstate.com agent to determine what programs may be available, plus online research into local and state assistance programs, as many are designed to support individuals in specific communities, including the LGBTQ+ community.

For medical professionals, police, teachers, firefighters, and other community heroes, there are several special loan and assistance programs designed to help with home purchases, often offering benefits like down payment assistance, reduced closing costs, and more favorable loan terms.

The Hero Home Loan Program provides first responders, including police officers, firefighters, and paramedics, with benefits such as lower interest rates and reduced closing costs. This program aims to make homeownership more accessible by offering more flexible credit score requirements and down payment assistance .

For educators, firefighters, law enforcement officers, and medical professionals, the Everyday Hero Housing Assistance Fund (EHHAF) offers closing cost assistance through gift funds. This program is designed to support those who serve their communities by making homeownership more affordable, with no repayment required for the grant funds​​.

The HUD Good Neighbor Next Door Program offers up to 50% off the list price of homes for law enforcement officers, pre-Kindergarten through 12th-grade teachers, firefighters, and emergency medical technicians. This initiative aims to encourage community revitalization by assisting these professionals in homeownership within the communities they serve​​.

Homes for Heroes provides assistance specifically to first responders and offers significant savings through Hero Rewards when buying, selling, or refinancing a home. On average, participants save $3,000, with the program offering real estate and mortgage specialist connections tailored to the needs of first responders​​.

LGBTQ-Friendly Lending Options

Finding a lender that understands and supports the unique needs of our LGBTQ community can make a significant difference. Some lenders and organizations specialize in offering inclusive financial products and resources to assist LGBTQ+ homebuyers. These may include specialized mortgage products, financial planning services, and guidance through the home buying process.

The journey to homeownership is a milestone that requires careful planning and support. Remember, every step taken towards saving and financing your home purchase brings you closer to the dream of homeownership.

(GayRealEstate.com offers valuable resources and advice tailored to meet the unique needs of our LGBTQ+ community in their journey towards homeownership. For more comprehensive guidance and support in navigating the home buying process, visit GayRealEstate.com choose an agent and start a no-obligation conversation today.)

Jeff Hammerberg is founding CEO of Hammerberg & Associates, Inc. Reach him at [email protected].

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