Take me out to the

wedding

A Lewiston bride plans the first-ever wedding at Portland’s Hadlock Field.

PORTLAND – Ladies will cry. An organ will play. The bride will wear white.

And, at just the right moment, a lighthouse will rise behind the centerfield wall and a foghorn will blast.

“This is us,” said groom-to-be Mark Hall, glancing at his fiance, Dawna Bonneau of Lewiston. “This is the best place we could find.”

On Aug. 27, the couple plan to marry at Hadlock Field in Portland.

Family and friends will watch from the stands as Dawna and her father, Roland Bonneau, walk down the aisle – 90 feet, exactly – from third plate to home.

The couple will then exchange vows at the minor league ballpark’s home plate.

It’s the perfect spot for the baseball fans, who met two years ago this past Sunday. It was an online meeting that began with the Boston Red Sox.

Dawna, 33, was scrolling through profiles on an Internet dating site when she noticed Mark, 43, and one of his goals.

“It said, I want to see the Red Sox win the World Series before I die,'” Dawna recalled. “That got my attention.”

They e-mailed each other and met. After one date, Mark knew Dawna was special.

“She’s an independent person,” he said. “So am I. We match.”

Of course, they are both lifelong Red Sox fans.

Mark, from Winchendon, Mass., grew up emulating right fielder Dwight Evans, wearing the player’s number “24” on his own baseball jerseys. Mark also worked for a single-A baseball team in the Midwest before settling into his current job, selling Sebago Brewing Co. beer.

Dawna, who grew up in Lewiston, learned about the Red Sox from her dad. “I never stopped being a fan,” she said.

She now lives in Portland and works days as a graphic artist. However, she moonlights as a skybox waitress at Hadlock Field.

Since the couple have been together, they have visited several major-league ballparks: the Milwaukee Brewer’s Miller Park, the Baltimore Orioles’ Camden Yards and the Cleveland Indians’ Jacob Field.

Of course, they have also visited Fenway Park, which Dawna described as the “ultimate” wedding site.

However, a ballpark wedding wasn’t pre-ordained.

The couple checked on other possible places for the big ceremony. Among them were local cruise lines and nature sites. Some were too pricey. Some just didn’t click with both of their personalities.

“Other things didn’t suit us,” Dawna said. “This did.”

Officials for the Portland Sea Dogs and the City of Portland said it is a first for the 10-year-old park.

The goal of the wedding is fun.

Guests, who will sit in the box seats, are encouraged to dress casually. Mark and Dawna plan to use the public address system for the vows. The organ will play “Here Comes the Bride.”

The couple considered getting the Sea Dogs’ mascot, Slugger, to drive Dawna onto the field but nixed the idea.

“That would have been too much,” she said.

They have their limits. But, they plan to let loose a bit more at the reception.

Guests will enter through turnstiles. A replica of Fenway’s left field wall – and the iconic Citgo sign – will be among the decorations. Tables will be named after parks. And instead of wedding cake, they plan to serve cup cakes, frosted to resemble baseballs.

Dawna will also display a special baseball cap. It has a veil.

“You’re not going to wear that during the ceremony?” asked Mark.

“No,” she said. “I’m not.”