Ashlei & Justin
Wedding Party
Acadia Troiano
Maid of Honor
Acadia and I met when I moved to Maine when I was 13 years old. Acadia is a few years younger than I but we hit it off instantly. I'd like to say we were typical good girls but we were drinking Ice 101 and chocolate milk by the age of 14, something we both look back on and think "WTF was wrong wth us?" We skipped a lot of school to do absolutely nothing but sit on my couch. When my mom would come home from work, we made it seem like we had been in school all day; going as far as jumping out of the second story window and coming in through the door as if we walked home! Acadia went into the navy when she finished high school. We didn't lose touch but seeing as she was in Virginia and I was in Maine, we weren't as close but when she came home a few years ago, it felt as she never left.
Kate Meehan
Bridesmaid
Like Justin, I met Kate through working at Shaw's. It was not friends from the start, it was rather, Kate was my boss and made me "work too hard" when I only wanted the job to meet Justin. After I eventually quit, Kate and Justin were close friends. Her and I remained acquaintances with few words here and there. I don't know exactly when my Kate and I became friends but I'm glad we moved forward with our relationship. I can go to her with anything knowing I won't be judged, at the same time knowing, shes going to be 100% honest with me. She's my concert friend, my friend who will eat the worst (but great) foods with, shes my friend who goes above and beyond, shes also my friend who I can laugh endlessly with. I'm grateful to have her by my side through everything!
Samantha George
Bridesmaid
We met freshmen year of high school. We were in the same clique but outside of the clique we didn't start really hanging out or talking until sophomore year. We were total opposite people but it didn't matter because the things we did have in common overflowed in laughter and long talks about our futures. As typical teenagers, we fought about dumb teenager things but in the end we always forgave each other and became closer and closer. Fast forward to now, 15+ years later, we are still the bestest friends. I don't know what I'd do without her.
Alanna Derrig
Bridesmaid
My stepsister! The girl I shared a room with from age 12-18 but have known practically my whole life! Her mom met my dad online. My dad, brother and I would visit them and vice versa, me and Alanna were closest. We liked the same music, the same celebrities, the same trash TV (Jerry Springer, Maury, just to name a couple) and everything in between. I was so desperate one time to bring her back to VA with me that I hid her underneath suitcases in our trunk (we didn't make it far before my dad caught on).We fought like typical sisters do but we shared a room so we had to get over whatever it was quickly. Despite having ...so much in common, Alanna is the crazy and spontaneous one! We might not have the same blood but we have the same heart and love that any siblings have for each other!
Casey Olesen
Best Man
There's not much else that can be said about a guy who'll travel the stars with you and lay waste to endless, hostiles aliens, fighting back alongside you against the teeming hordes of darkness. But, this story began a number of years ago, like most of these stories will start, at Shaw's. A tall, quiet, unassuming boy with a sarcastic smile and a dark sense of humor was perfect foil to my own grit. There's been a lot of ebbs and blows, bonding over the bench press, countless hours lost in the realm of digital combat, or just passing time while bagging groceries late at night. There's not a person I'd rather have along for any of those rides than this fella, right here.
CoDy Seguin
Groomsman
Long, winding roads always tend to be the most interesting, and the two of us share exactly that: a long, weird, diverging path with ups and downs and swerves and swoops and the best views and tunes to cruise by there ever could be. We share a bond going back to just before high school, and one that continued through all those formative years, and with those long-standing tethers keeping us tied, there's a friendship that will not easily wither or decay, if ever at all. Friends don't come cheap, and CoDy is the perfect example of that, literally and figuratively, and it makes any long, winding, even dreadful roads all the brighter and more colorful.
Justin Grover
Groomsman
There are not many words that can describe the sort of man that Justin Grover is, though a few, singularly distinct choices do stand out, in a sort of vaguely condensed version that could never properly articulate someone's wonderful complexities and the signature innateness. In the way a word like "particular" calls to mind a distinguished and clear opinion, it could never paint the picture with the diversity of brushstrokes a masterpiece truly calls for. "Progressive" is a word that promotes forward thinking, or insurance commercials, but one that could never capture the depth of Grover's thought, nor could it even touch on the breadth of his compassion. No, few words do Grover the Justice he deserves. So, I keep it simple, and I call him, "my best friend."
David May III
Groomsman
"Brothers in Arms." There's no other way to say what sort of tie Dave and myself carry with us: decades of friendship, forged in the fires of Deering High School, tempered in the furnace of Halo: Combat Evolved, LAN-style, sharpened amongst the abrasive, grinding soundscape of a lethal-as-all-hell metal band, and finely honed to a razor's edge through the battlefield of first retail and now all their future endeavors. It's badass stuff. Few people I know have endured the sorts of personal tragedies Dave has, and that he's remained as kind, generous, compassionate and warm as he has, is a testament to both himself and the enduring quality of his spirit. There's no one else I'd rather have my back when the team's down 2 points to win it. Dave and I can always get it done.