1 | She bought her wedding dress a year before he proposed, a blind date disaster, immigration challenges, and a love story you won’t forget from award winning author and speaker, Helen Raleigh.

Helen vowed she would never marry just to stay in the U.S. But love has a way of rewriting the rules.Halfway through her six-year visa, a blind date takes a disastrous turn when her Chinese communist upbringing clashes with his conservative American values. She’s sure she’ll never hear from him again—until she does. Choosing to avoid politics, Helen and Mike discover an undeniable connection.Helen begins to fall in love with this handsome American and realizes that he is her future husband. Unfortunately, the couple is faced with an obstacle when Helen must relocate from Denver to Detroit for work due to her visa. They resolve to make their relationship work long distance. While on a business trip, Helen and a friend see a beautiful wedding dress. Her friend dares her to try it on- it’s perfect. Believing that her boyfriend, Mike, is the man for her, she buys the wedding dress- even though they have not talked about marriage. While in the last year of her visa, Helen finds her immigration papers have been stalled. Her only option seems to be to move to Canada and wait for a new visa or a green card. Mike proposes another option, marry me. Will she stick to her vow that she will not marry to stay in America, or will she let love rewrite her future?In this episode, award winning author, news contributor, and honored entrepreneur, Helen Raleigh shares the incredible journey of how she met and unexpectedly fell in love with her husband, Mike.More info and photos of Helen & Mike👇 Don’t forget to subscribe and share this unexpected love story!📲 Follow us on Instagram @unexpectedlovestoriespodcast⁠⁠Follow us on TikTok ⁠⁠@theunexpectedlovestoriesFollow us on Facebook: ⁠⁠Unexpected Love Stories PodcastWebsite: Unexpected Love StoriesMusic:Sophie's Dream by Philip Ayers | Courtesy of www.epidemicsound.comWhere to Next by Ritchie Everett | Courtesy of www.epidemicsound.com