This was the first wedding I have done at this venue--
River Ridge Golf Club--although it has been around for a few years. I was delighted when Laura and Andrew contacted me about officiating their wedding on September 1, 2012 and I got my first opportunity to do a wedding there. We met last January and almost immediately agreed we were a good fit. Andrew and Laura wanted their wedding ceremony to reflect their beliefs about love and marriage and their personalities. And so we got to work on their ceremony.
September 1st arrived--hot, very hot, but sunny with only 30% chance of afternoon showers so we were safe for the outdoor ceremony. Marty and I arrived at our usual one-hour-ahead-of-ceremony time and set up my sound system. You can see it on the right on the tripod. The golf course is beautiful and so green from all the rain this summer.
This is the pavilion where the reception is being set up by the vendors. The Club catered the beverages. Mike Morse was the DJ for the reception. Whole Foods did the flowers. Stacey Kaufman,
Stacey K. Photography, and second shooter Andrew Hayes were covering the ceremony. If it had been raining, the ceremony would have been here or in a tent.
A popular idea for weddings these days is a tree where the guests sign on the "leaves." Laura and Andrew's tree reflected their color scheme of purple! On the right are little favors with the table numbers attached.
Sugarland provided this gorgeous cake but when they delivered it, it was too hot to put out so it was in a refrigerator for safekeeping!
Matthew Kanon was set up for the ceremony music. Matt and I do so many weddings together and I referred the couple to him for this wedding. They were very pleased!
The clubhouse from the golf course. It is very nice with a golf store, a snack bar, and upstairs there is a larger open area where the girls were getting dressed.
The guests were arriving via bus from Raleigh and were a little late getting there but as soon as they arrived and got seated, we began with the entrance of the groom, best man and one groomsman. It was quite breezy but we were grateful for the movement of hot air nevertheless!
After one groomsman escorted in Laura's grandmother, Laura's brother, Robbie, escorted in the Mother of the Bride, Kellie.
On the right is Elissa Schubert, the Sales and Events Coordinator for River Ridge. She was so knowledgeable and experienced in directing weddings that she did the whole thing! Thanks, Elissa! Great working with you! Our bridesmaids begin their processional.
Here comes our beautiful bride with her proud father, Gary!
And so we begin.....A warm welcome to all, a prayer, remembrance of those who have passed on, and recognition and thanks to their parents. That is Andrew's father on the left. His mother has passed on.
I loved telling Laura and Andrew's story. They were matched up by eHarmony--the best online site of its kind. Of all the couples I have married and counseled, those who met on eHarmony have been off the charts in compatibility. It is impressive. They do such a good job and I highly recommend it.
Laura and Andrew were very cautious and took a long time to get to know each other by email and phone before ever meeting in person. Finally Laura gave up on waiting for Andrew to ask her out, so she asked him. They knew from that first meeting that they were soulmates. They included an excerpt about soulmates from Richard Bach's book,
Bridge Across Forever in their ceremony.
Then the vows of marriage.....
The rings.....
The moment they legally become husband and wife!
This may be my favorite part of the ceremony!
Hugs and congratulations all around!
Andrew and Laura, your love for each other is wonderful to be around! I am so happy you found each other and so thrilled that you chose me to officiate for you. I wish you the best life can offer!
