Snowmobile photo sparks northern Ont. romance

Tyanna Labre said her love story began in October 2019 when she posted a photo of herself on her Ski-Doo on social media.

Tyler Labre had added her as a friend on Facebook a month prior because they had mutual friends, she said.

Tyanna Labre says this photo of her with her snowmobile helmet on prompted her now-husband Tyler to reach out to her on social media. (Supplied)

The Facebook post caught Tyler's attention, so he sent her a message asking if she wanted to go riding together sometime.

"He never spoke to me until I posted the picture in my Ski-Doo helmet, knowing we had that mutual interest," Tyanna told CTV News in an email.

From there, their mutual love for the outdoors snowballed along with their love for each other.

After several months of dating, Tyler's father became ill and the COVID-19 pandemic began.

Tyanna said she was working as a front-line nurse while focusing on the health and safety of their family.

When Tyler's dad was diagnosed with lung cancer, she said they spent a lot of time together with him and their relationship quickly evolved.

They bought a house together after about six months of dating and got engaged after dating for about a year, she said.

"We then got the news that the cancer had made its way to his father's brain. He then asked me if we could start trying to have a family so that his dad would be able to meet our baby because we didn’t know how long he had left," Tyanna said.

Around the time that she got pregnant, Tyler's dad was given about nine months to live.

"During that time his father stayed strong during his treatments to meet our baby," Tyanna said.

"My husband asked me at seven months pregnant if we could get married in the backyard, for his dad to be able to be his best man. I of course said 'yes.' I bought a small dress and we gathered our family to have a beautiful reception."

Tyanna and Tyler Labre stand with his best man, his father, on their wedding day. Aug. 7/21 (Supplied)

Tyler's dad was able to meet his granddaughter and passed away six months after she was born.

"Our new baby kept us strong, while our worlds were falling apart," Tyanna said.

"I believed we were placed together to help each other through all these storms we have faced."

• Download our app to get local alerts on your device
• Get the latest local updates right to your inbox

She credits Tyler's father for helping them create a beautiful life together.

Tyler and Tyanna Labre with their baby and dog (Supplied)

"I learned a lot since meeting Tyler. He has taught me unconditional love. He has taught me strength in ways I did not know it could exist. He is such an amazing man, he makes me so proud each and every day; as I know his dad would be," Tyanna said.

"Our story is not perfect. I thought that I wanted a large wedding with thousands by my side. I thought that I would want to wait for a big reception. What I learned is that it is not the size of the reception, but who is by your side that matters most. I would not change it for the world. His dad was an amazing man, he accepted me as his own and we miss him terribly."

She said one day the couple plans to have a large reception with friends and family because they never got the chance to have a first dance or honeymoon. 

CTVNewsNorthernOntario.ca is featuring three northern love stories in honour of Valentine's Day.

An interaction between a Sudbury man and a Calif. woman on TikTok turned into a real life romance. Read the story here. 

Neil Shyminsky who is from Sudbury and his wife, Iselle Slome is from California, tied the knot last year. But not before a whirlwind romance blossomed on social media. (Supplied)

Read about how a Sudbury man's shoe shopping trip sparked a romance.

Jannik Hobson and Nick Channon engagement photo. (Honey + Hive Photography!)