Wedding Party
Steph Bauer
Maid of Honor
There are few people in my life that I can tell you the exact moment we met, but with Steph, the date was August 18th, 2004: USC Move In Day. Jim Claus was climbing on the dorm room desk, rewiring my computer cords up the side of the bookshelf (as you do), when Steph walked in with her mom and sister. It was a weird moment. I'm not sure what exactly she was thinking when she laid eyes on the scene, but I doubt it was 'this girl is about to become my best friend for life.' Yet here we are, almost 20 years later. Steph and I were pretty much inseparable for the better part of a decade, until she moved to London for her MBA. The night before she left, we stood in her empty apartment, cleaning her kitchen and clearing out the freezer, sobbing over frozen bags of mixed vegetable. But I've learn that with Steph and me, distance doesn't matter. Nor does time. No matter how long it's been since we last talked (which usually isn't very long), no matter what season of life we're each in, Steph and I were destined for best friendship. And thanks to USC's random freshman year roommate assignment, we found each other and never looked back.
Nicolette Panos
Maid of Honor
One time many years ago, my aunt took a DNA test and reported that she was 99% Portuguese and <1% Italian. I figured I could reasonably claim these stats as my own, so of course I called my full-blooded Italian best friend, to tell her that I myself was part Italian. "I KNEW IT!!!! I KNEW WE WERE SISTERS!!!!" was her response. Because that's the kind of friend Nicolette is: she's family. We met at some point in high school (maybe sophomore year?), and we've been doing life together ever since. We've seen each other during every possible phase of hair color - most notably, way too blonde (not great on either of us) to "the closest brown to black" (I did it first). I'm proud to say I'm Auntie and Godmother to her two beautiful daughters. We've spent as much time deep diving into reality TV and celebrity gossip as we have discussing careers, relationships and political opinions. She may sometimes forget she's my best friend (a la Khartoum Thanksgiving 2013) but I think that's just because we have the type of friendship that's not something you need to consciously remember, it's something you simply know in your heart. Nicolette is my heart friend.
Kenny Halloran
Officiant
Meet Kenny, our wedding officiant, Ben's high school partner-in-crime, and honorary member of the Teresi family. The two were co-captains of the high school wrestling team and, despite Ben once breaking Kenny's vertebrae, Kenny still went on to win the TX state championship (which Ben still describes as the best sporting event he ever witnessed). Kenny wants people to know that he looks great in leopard print and describes himself as "handsome, with good hair, and very fast". Kenny's life experience extends beyond the mat - be sure to ask him if he enjoyed the dengue fever, why he missed the high school prom, and how he managed to marry a Latina despite failing Spanish.
Gwylim & Michael
Best Men
Ben's long-time NYC best friends, sometimes roommates, and occasional nemeses, they are technically different people, but will receive but one website bio. These pineapples have become my closest confidants as we navigate "growing up" in a city that doesn't want us to. Over the years we have planned events as unrenowned as The HAMBO New Years Eve Party, the Tri-Borough Cruise, and the Luau. We have tested the limits of the postal service (turns out they will deliver a loose slinky). We have successfully operated an excavator without killing ourselves, set up a hydropower pig roast, watched the sun rise while blasting Danger Zone, learned a lot about beaver dams, sprinted down hallways, thrown parties to celebrate houseplants, and sang too much karaoke. We've seen jobs and relationships come and go, chased dreams, and talked a lot about life. Despite first impressions, these are thoughtful and intelligent people, emotionally mature enough to tell each other that we love each other, and in the same breath that "you dont know how anything works." I dread the forthcoming wedding speech from these two, but am comforted only in the fact that it would lead to mutually assured destruction.