Heading into tribal council that night, Joe Anglim sensed he was vulnerable.
After two weeks competing on the 30th season of the reality TV show “Survivor” in 2014, he had proven to be the best athlete in the game, and three of his seven tribemates agreed he had to go.
Mr. Anglim had a pact — or alliance in “Survivor” parlance — with two other tribe members to vote another challenger out of the competition. That left his fate up to fellow contestant, Sierra Dawn Thomas.
“I remember it so clearly, the fear in his eyes and him being scared of going home,” Ms. Thomas said of Mr. Anglim on the day of the vote. “I kept reiterating that tonight, I’m not going to vote for you.”
But a few elimination ceremonies later, Mr. Anglim didn’t get that same assurance. Ms. Thomas wrote his name down on her ballot, the votes were tallied, and his torch was extinguished.
“You want him there for a lot of the game, but you don’t want him there too long or he’ll never go home,” Ms. Thomas said. “He’s going to win everyone’s heart, and then he’s going to win the damn game.”
Despite Mr. Anglim’s best attempts to form an alliance, Ms. Thomas kept her rival at arms’ length during the competition. But when they arrived back stateside after 39 days of filming in San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua, she helped him download Snapchat at the airport so they could keep in touch.
“For the next few years, we were Snapchatting our lives to each other,” Mr. Anglim said.
Mr. Anglim returned home to Scottsdale, Ariz., and Ms. Thomas to Ogden, Utah. It wasn’t long before they began making trips to visit one another and other fellow castmates, who together became a tightknit community outside of the show.
“The game is designed to separate you and make you not want to be friends,” said Mike Holloway, the winner of Season 30. “But we found a unique group of people that wanted something more out of this than being an experience that we watch back on TV.”
As the half-dozen members from the cast that season — known as “the dirty 30” to die-hard “Survivor” fans — would meet up across the country, they noticed Mr. Anglim and Ms. Thomas starting to develop a special bond.
“Sierra and Joe would always fight like brother and sister,” said Carolyn Rivera, the Season 30 runner-up. “I told Sierra, ‘You know you’re in love with him you have to get over it. Honey, you’ve got this.’”
“We were both dating other people at the time,” Ms. Thomas said. “People would always be like, ‘I don’t know about your relationship with Joe.’ But we literally just friend-zoned each other.”
As their friendship grew, even their families began to notice something between them. For their fellow contestants, it was only a matter of time before the two realized it as well.
“They were the last people to know that they were the perfect couple,” said contestant Max Dawson.
Things started to change when Mr. Anglim, an artist, jewelry maker and graphic designer, offered to make a custom ring for Ms. Thomas, a professional rodeo rider and barrel racer, in memory of her favorite horse Tomahawk. As he spent months crafting the ring out of Tomahawk’s tooth, Mr. Anglim began reflecting on their relationship.
“I’d go through my phone and ask myself, ‘Why are there so many pictures of me and her?’ he said. “People are constantly saying I think there’s more with you two. You start asking yourself, do I love this person?”
Three years after competing against each other on the show, the two began dating, and Mr. Anglim moved in with Ms. Thomas in Ogden last year. They’ve even began breeding horses at Ms. Thomas’s family stables, though Mr. Anglim has yet to take up riding.
“I fell in love my best friend,” Ms. Thomas said. “I know that sounds crazy and you hear people tell you that all the time, but it actually happened with us.”
The two aren’t the only couple to have met on “Survivor.” There have been at least seven other “Survivor” marriages since the show debuted in 2000, including Rob Mariano, a.k.a. “Boston Rob,” and Amber Brkich, who were engaged on a live “Survivor” season finale in 2004.
Mr. Anglim, who has appeared on three seasons of the show, and Ms. Thomas, who has appeared on two seasons, have embraced their status as something of a “Survivor’’ power couple.
“We’re both lucky because Survivor treated us so well,” Ms. Thomas said. “We got awesome edits and not much hate. So when people see us out, they’re super excited. Even if we’re on a date night, we always take that time to talk to people.”
The couple also takes part in charity events with other “Survivor” contestants for charities such as Amanda Hope Rainbow Angels, a nonprofit organization in Phoenix focused on pediatric cancer care, and Operation Underground Railroad, which rescues children from sex trafficking. Mr. Anglim, beloved by fans of the show for his shoulder-length mane and thick man bun, raised $10,000 for the two charities by cutting and donating his locks earlier this year. The money was put up by the pop star Sia, who challenged Mr. Anglim to the haircut in a tweet during the final reunion episode for his most recent season.
“I said absolutely, let’s cut it off,” Mr. Anglim said. “I was so glad. I was ready to get rid of it.”
The month before that season finale, the couple were driving back from the wedding of Mr. Anglim’s sister in Arizona. They pulled off the highway to a campsite in Beaver, Utah, just as the sun was going down.
“Joe grabbed a bottle of wine and some red Dixie cups and asked to go watch the sunset,’” Ms. Thomas said.
They started walking and came upon a swinging bench looking out at the Tushar Mountains to the East. There, on April 9, Mr. Anglim got down on one knee and proposed. A tearful Ms. Thomas said yes.
“I think we both cried for about five minutes,” Mr. Anglim said.
On Nov. 23, around 30 members of the couple’s immediate family gathered for the wedding at Refuge Church in Ogden. The groom, in a gray suit by DC Tuxedos, and the bride, in a flowing white wedding dress by Naama and Anat, stood before the altar as the late-afternoon light streamed through the stained-glass windows.
Brian Sauvé, a nondenominational minister and pastor of the church, gave both the groom and bride a burning candle, which together they used to light a single flame, representing their covenant.
“I pray God blesses us on this day, forever in our union,” Mr. Anglim said in his vows to Ms. Thomas. “To you now I give my word, my thoughts and my actions, and my whole heart and intention to love you. I love you and you alone. To you I vow, forever and ever, amen.” He accented the last amen with a gospel-tinged melody.
In her vows, Ms. Thomas said, “I will love you faithfully, through good times and bad, regardless of the obstacles that we face. I will put us above all and first always. I promise not just to grow old together but to grow together. Today I give you my hand, my heart and my love forever.”
The couple exchanged rings and shared a first kiss as newlyweds. Mr. Sauvé presented them as Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Francis Thomas, and the couple walked down the aisle before returning to the altar to snap a few group portraits with their families.
ON THIS DAY
When Nov. 23, 2019
Where Refuge Church, Ogden, Utah.
‘Survivor’ Reunion The reception was held at the Gala Hideaway Event Center in nearby Layton, Utah. Among the 300 guests were 11 former “Survivor” contestants from various seasons. They included: Mike Holloway, who was the best man at the wedding, Carolyn Rivera, Max Dawson, Jenn Brown, Dan Foley, Terry Dietz, Missy Payne, Andrew Savage, Chris Underwood, Aubry Bracco and Tyler Fredrickson.
Toasts The bride’s sister and maid of honor Amber Ercanbrack gave the first toast of the night. “When I met Joe, I was a little skeptical, I’m not going to lie,” she said. “I had to be the overprotective sister. But quickly I learned that Joe was the real deal and perfect for Sierra. Joe I’m smoking your torch for being a single man. The tribe has spoken. Welcome to the family Joe.”
Mr. Holloway, the best man and sole survivor from Season 30, followed with his toast. “Joe and I, when we came off the show, became very fast friends,” he said. “We went on trips together; we talked endlessly about the game of Survivor. We talked about the girls we wanted to date and the girls that wanted to date us — or him,” he said jokingly.
“You’re both always willing to give your time and give our love,” Mr. Holloway told the couple. “And we appreciate it. We’re here to be on this journey with you and support you and love you and help you succeed in this thing we call marriage and life.”
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