They met at a New York financial services firm and fell in love
The Boston Globe · Carrie Simonelli ·
Financial analysts Mariah and Charlie started dating while working for BlackRock. They recently wed in Newport.
As Mariah Ward ate dinner with her mother at New York City’s L’Artusi in December 2021, she burst into tears. What am I doing, she wondered aloud? She dreaded her upcoming move to the Upper West Side, which would take her away from her family in Hingham, her hometown. Global asset management corporation BlackRock had offered Mariah, who has a bachelor’s in business administration from the University of Richmond, her ideal job in investment strategy — but at the company’s Manhattan office.
After some sleepless nights, Mariah, then 26, decided it was the right move. A self-described old soul, she vowed to focus her time in the city on her career. Her new manager tried to ease the transition, giving her a list of 150 co-workers who would be good contacts. She began reaching out to them on email and video chat even before she started the job, excited to grow her network. It took months, stretching into 2022 and her first few months at BlackRock, but she connected with every person.
In the office that spring, co-workers from a different department stopped by to chat with Mariah and her team. Charlie Hammel, then 28, recognized Mariah from their Zoom meeting. Though get-to-know you calls like theirs happened at the company all the time, “I remember hers sticking out because I had a great time talking to her,” Charlie says. And, “I thought she was really cute.”
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