A Wisconsin couple who met in line at a McDonald’s – while ordering a quarter pounder with cheese and fries – have celebrated their 27th anniversary at the same restaurant.
Cindi and Mark Franceschina first saw each other on February 9, 1996 at McDonald’s on Green Bay Road in Racine. Mark, who was 25 at the time, said he was entranced by Cindi’s dark hair and smile as the couple waited in line.
After she got her order and stormed out the door, Mark followed her to her parking lot and ate her lunch. It was then that he plucked up the courage to ask her out – and three years later they got married.
Every year, the two spend their anniversary lunch at the same McDonald’s – sharing fast food while celebrating decades of marital bliss.
The couple, who share three children, are managing to pull it off even if they have to divert to the drive-thru as they have during the pandemic.
Earlier this month, the couple were treated to McDonald’s, which decorated a table just for them with 27 long-stemmed roses and provided sweets and their favorite food.
The couple, Cindi and Mark Franceschina, will meet at McDonald’s in Racine on February 9 at 12 noon for their anniversary lunch. This year, McDonald’s even gave the lovebirds a red table setting, red roses, and candy
The couple – who are acting more like a newlywed couple than an old married couple – were as giddy as ever as Mark presented his love with a bouquet of flowers and a big Mac on the house, and spoke of how delighted he was when he first met her times met
The couple enjoyed their cheese quarter pounder with fries and a soda as they celebrated 27 years of wedded bliss
Come rain or shine, the couple manage to meet at noon on February 9 — no apologies.
“There were years when I was like, ‘Oh, he better show up. If he forgets! But we never have,’ said Cindi. “We would both show up and have lunch without reminding each other of anything.”
The couple – who are acting more like a newlywed couple than an old married couple – were as giddy as ever as Mark presented his love with a bouquet before they sat down to enjoy their anniversary dinner.
They married on May 30, 1999 and McDonald’s was even part of their wedding ceremony.
As a tribute to the place where they first met, the pastor at the altar used the Happy Meal anecdote to explain how they spent the rest of their lives trying to please one another.
Cindi told that as the pastor spoke about all the fun they would have in the relationship, Mark pulled out a bee toy that was in the Happy Meal – which she has to this day.
Cindi told CBS 58 that while their orders may change over the years, their love for each other doesn’t and only grows stronger.
The happy couple – pictured after years of marriage. They’ve made it a tradition to always return to the same McDonald’s to celebrate the first day they turn a blind eye
McDonald’s on Green Bay Road in Racine, Wisconsin
The couple – who are acting more like a newlywed couple than an old married couple – were as giddy as ever as Mark presented his love with a bouquet before they sat down to enjoy their anniversary dinner
Mark and Cindi in a family photo. The couple has been married for 27 years
Mark repeated the story of how he met his blushing bride.
He said Cindi stood in line next to him on February 9, 1996 and that he was immediately struck by her beauty.
Cindi said she usually goes through the drive-thru, but remembered the mile-long line and decided to go in and order her food in person. Mark was also waiting in the same line to place an order.
He recalled, “She said ‘hello’ and followed the greeting with a smile.
‘I was like ‘man… wow… she’s beautiful” Mark said, ‘I need to talk to her.’
Cindi eventually left the restaurant and Mark grabbed his order and followed her. He was determined to see her again.
“Wherever she goes, I’ll follow her,” he said. “I don’t care if she goes to Chicago, Milwaukee. Where she stops I just have to stop and talk to her.’
The couple married three years after first meeting in the McDonald’s line
Cindi laughed: “Some people swipe right. We just went to get fast food’
Pictures from their wedding day in the 1990s
Finally, Mark caught up with Cindi, who was sitting in her parked car eating her quarter pounder and fries at a car wash. He approached her and startled her at first.
“I hadn’t seen it come in,” Cindi recalled. “I was like, ‘Oh my god, this guy. serial killer? I don’t know. His amazing line, the first words ever spoken to me were “Hi, do you remember me?”
He ended up asking her if she would like to “go out sometime.”
Cindi wasn’t sure if Mark was joking and when they both discovered they never did anything like that, they laughed and then the two exchanged numbers.
Mark joked that Cindi called him that evening. He laughed, “She couldn’t wait.”
The rest is history.
Cindi laughed: “Some people swipe right. We just went to get fast food.’
Mark added: “The older we get, the more we laugh, the more fun we have.”
They hope their love story will help them inspire others.
“Commitment works. Relationships work if you work at them,” said Mark. “If you make an effort and choose to make it work.”