Erin & Sam
Wedding Party
Connie Buck
Matron of Honor
Connie is the best sister that a girl could ask for. No matter what I had going on, she was and still is always there supporting me and cheering me on. She has also been the best big sister for having such cute clothes that I could take when I was younger. I have always looked up to her and have wanted to be just like her. I remember taking her iPod when she was gone and copying down all of the music she listened to so that I could listen to those songs too. Connie has many talents but my favorite is her way to comfort you with her words and presence. She knows exactly what I need and is great at helping me make decisions. Truly, the best big sister ever.
Carter Cunningham
Best Man
Where do I start with Carter... Legendarily referred to as "Pats Kid" (his father's name is Pat), Carter had no issue becoming a great friend to me and a commoner around the "Frenchold" (My parent's house). One of my favorite memories with him occurred on a normal night at my house, while we watched some sports game and were just talking. I got up to go to the kitchen, and he asked me to grab him one of the cookies that my mother and sister had made. I grabbed it, yelled something like "Carter, here it comes". He was laying on the couch, and I was directly behind him (no way for him to see me). I sauced the cookie to him, and it landed perfectly in his hand. Pandemonium ensued, and it instantly became one of our favorite memories. He's a big funny guy, and has always had my back.
Alison French
Bridesmaid
What can’t this girl do. Alison is Sam's little sister who does it all; sings, dances, is a tri-sport athlete, competes in speech, makes some amazing desserts, wantons, and pot-stickers. Having four older brothers, she is also tough as nails and can definitely hold her own. I will never forget when I went to one of her softball games and as I was walking up, someone smoked a ball out of the park. As I approached her family, they said that it was her, I should have known that was her powerful swing. This past summer, she asked me to be her Confirmation sponsor and I couldn’t have been more honored. Getting to walk with this bright and beautiful soon to be sister-in-law of mine has been a joy so far and I can’t wait to see what more she accomplishes in life.
Jacob French
Groomsman
Grease is a good kid. Always wore his heart on his sleeve growing up, and was a passionate "all in" guy no matter what we were doing. I got the chance to coach him and my other two brothers for their senior year at Cotter, and always enjoyed watching Jacob go above and beyond with everything. He's a passionate, gentle giant that will always give you 110%, and the "Crocs/Socks/Shorts" combo even when it is not expected..
Emma Mockler
Bridesmaid
Lets just go back to where it all began with Emma and I. One evening, I was at a SMU men’s hockey game and Emma had said she was going to check out the event that was going on in the pool. I didn’t know her much then but I said I would go with her. We walked there together and our evening ended with us being soaking wet because we decided to jump into the pool with all of our clothes on. Zoom forward 3 years later, she is one of my very closest friends, roommate and person that will always laugh at me for the silly things I do. If you ever want to find friends at college, see if they will jump in a pool with you fully clothed.
David French
Groomsman
David is the brother that always seems to disagree with me. This may seem like a bad thing, but he means well. One of the best things about him, is that if he knows he's being watched, he can't stop smiling. All you have to do is make eye contact, and he's cheesin' harder than ever. He's an authentic kid. He's got no problem telling you his opinion. He's the baby triplet. He's my brother David, and one of my groomsman.
Spencer Johnston
Bridesmaid
Two words. Dance. Party. Never have I met someone who wants to have so many dance parties and I love it! If you throw on any TSwift song, she is bound to bust out a move or two. Spence is the biggest hype and is always ready for a good time. On the other end though, she would stop anything she’s doing to make sure you are ok. Spence has been Emma and I’s mom away from home while we were at school and makes the best flautas I have ever had. Someday, her little kindergarteners will be so lucky to have her as their teacher and she is sure going to make a difference in so many of her students' lives.
Noah French
Groomsman
Noah is the only sibling I have that can understand being the oldest, as he is the oldest of my triplet brothers. Noah is the epitome of performing even in the smallest of places. He's a ridiculous slow pitch player, and normally my teammate when we play 2 on 2. He's one of my favorite people to play the sax with, and he's innovative in his own way. He goes by Boogie, and is a killer DJ.
Abbie Budin
Bridesmaid
Everything my sister-in-law Abbie touches is suddenly made into something beautiful. She has an eye for tasteful decorating and seeing the potential in a piece of wood, window or cloth and it is amazing. As a music teacher herself, Abbie has been a mentor for me as I have gone through school and now will begin student teaching. I have gotten to sit in on her classes with her young students and she has those kids so captivated and keeps them moving and singing the whole time they are in her room. Not to mention how good of a mom she is to sweet Emmy Lou. Emmy is so lucky so have such a cool mom who makes the best cookies in the whole world!
Joe Budin
Groomsman
Joe is an intimidating presence. Not just physically, but mentally as well. As the prospective oldest brother-in-law to me, he will definitely be a jolly figure in mine and Erin's marriage. One thing I admire about Joe, is that he is always open to flexing his mind (conspiracy theories), always open to activities (Catan, Chess, etc...), and ready to have a good time. If you hear a loud voice singing and see a blur on the dance floor at our wedding, that'll be this guy.
Allie Hertaus
Bridesmaid
Growing up, Allie and I spent most of our childhoods together. Often, you could find us playing board games in her basement, making mac and cheese with bread crumbs, and watching movies at sleepovers. The only issue is that Allie falls asleep to most movies she watches while I would be up till the end and then have no idea how to shut the TV off at her house. There are too many favorite memories with Allie but one that sticks out is all of the countless times we would go lay in the snow and then run back into the hot tub and basically put our bodies into temperature shock. Thinking back, it was pretty silly, but it sure kept us entertained. We have stayed close through the years and she truly is the little sister I never had.
Thomas Budin
Groomsman
Man, this kid is smart. He knows/does things with cars that make me feel nothing but stupid. That doesn't mean that he is condescending or mean, but it just reflects the immense knowledge of anything mechanical that he has, and lack of such knowledge that I possess. I love talking 'The Office' with him, as well as playing games/cards. He's a kind guy, he's got some new facial hair, and he is becoming his own man.
Sami Mino
Bridesmaid
Not many brides can say that they asked one of their past babysitters to be their bridesmaid. Talk about the best babysitter ever! I vividly remember playing airplane with her, talking about her childhood when I couldn’t sleep and making fun things with beads. My whole life, I have looked up to her and have loved being in her life ever since I was little! I used to get to go down with her mom and pick her up from college when she was on break for the week. Our families are quite close and it has been such a joy watching her own family grow and being able to hang out with her young kiddos.
Jordan Jacobson
Groomsman
Man, is this kid a monster. As a former college roommate, Jordan is the type of guy that will impulsively do productive/good/fun things. He said in college he wanted to learn how to play hockey, and he now plays on a team in the cities and is on the SMU Club team. All the memories playing NHL17, 18, and 19 with him, and the spontaneous Minnesota Wild games have been a great ride, and I look forward to many more memories. When Jordan shows up, the party is starting.
Casey McCarraher
Bridesmaid
Casey is one of those people that you are just drawn to when she is in the room. Freshman year music fundamentals, I had a gut feeling we were going to be friends but never did I think that we were going to get the chance to travel all over the world with choir trips, share the stage as the world's greatest hype duo and painfully suffer through music history together. Our countless memories together can get us belly laughing pretty hard but nothing tops the day when we both realized how much we love to impersonate Michael Jackson and it hasn’t stopped since. HEE HEE
Eric Nemitz
Groomsman
Eric was my first roommate in college. We had so many original memories together involving playing video games late into the night, getting food, drinking mountain dew, and watching movies. With Eric, I always had a deep talking confidant, and he knew I was always there for him. When both of us were going through difficult times, we would talk late into the night and help each other through. He's a quiet, kind, and genuine guy, and I'm glad to call him my friend.
Lauren Chadderdon
Personal Attendant
Being so close in age and my only female first cousin on my moms side, Lauren and I were bound to be close. She taught me how to paint my nails (often with blue or purple nail polish), how to get down off of bunk beds and how to play Mario Kart Wii, even though she beat me every time. We made some killer forts in her room and got to be in the same grade all throughout school. Lauren is going to be an amazing nurse in the future and her patients will be so lucky to have her.
Logan McCabe
Usher
The most impactful thing Logan has ever done for me, is set me up with Erin. He was the guy. He nudged me towards her, and I blindly trusted and followed where he was leading me. All the nights we watched wrestling all the times we talked sports/current events will some up what Logan is. He is an authentic, no BS, full of opinions, workout muscle hamster. The man gets things done. If it weren't for him, August 1st would just be a normal Saturday.
Gabrielle Shupe
Personal Attendant
Never in my life have I known someone more organized than Gabrielle Shupe. I had the blessing of being one of her roommates our junior year and found out how polar opposite we are when it comes to the looks of our rooms. Gab is always the first to ask if you need anything and talk for hours if you have the time. We also made it through ballet together and didn’t break anything but laughed probably more than we should have. Gab will always be my very first friend at SMU.
Jordan Buck
Usher
Jordan may be the closest person (from Erin's side) that can talk sports with me on an almost ludicrous level. It's fun when Jordan is in the same room as me, as his eye is on the game as much as mine. He's a passionate guy, and his best quality (in my humble opinion), is how riled up he gets when talking about hot topics, since I feel his pain and understand how he feels when people intentionally push his buttons. Since Jordan is Connie's newly wedded husband, I look forward to many fun years with him and great moments!