Kendall & Conor
Wedding Party
Kendall Lavoie
Bride
(written by Conor) Kendall Lavoie Kendall has been the defining person of my life. Much of my formative years were spent obsessing over her. Everything from my music taste to my career decisions have been determined by my proximity to Kendall. We have a long history together, one that spans nearly every phase of our lives and suggests a certain cosmic inevitability to our love.
KL
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And while many men feel threatened by the lifelong commitment that is marriage, it is this shared history that makes me absolutely certain that whatever life throws at us we can tackle it together. She is the best person I have ever met. She makes me a better man in more ways than I have the space to write. Everything I do is for her and for us. All the successes and failures I will experience in my life will be worthless unless I get to share them with her.
Conor Morrissey
Groom
(written by Kendall) Conor is the most patient, caring partner I could ask for. He genuinely makes me a better person each and every day we spend together. He not only puts up with my constant need for reassurance and attention (Do you love me??? x10 each day), but he handles it with grace. He's incredibly intelligent and driven, having achieved a masters degree, bought a house, and secured a full-time teaching position by the age of 24 (not to mention scoring me, amiright?).
CM
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I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with him and to create our own family together. He's all I've ever wanted and more ♡
Colin Kazunas
Officiant
Colin and Conor’s lives have been intertwined since the moment they met at the bus stop on Conor’s first day at a new school in 7th grade. Colin is the only non-familial person on earth who has known Conor longer than Kendall has. He was also the one constant roommate in Conor and Kendall’s journey of living together. Their lives are so intertwined that people who meet one but have never even heard of the other constantly mix their names up. This has trained each of them to respond to either name in any situation. Over the course of his wedding weekend, Conor expects to be called Colin a minimum of 5 times.
CK
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On the surface, Conor and Colin don’t share much in common. But since they were young, they’ve shared a brotherly love that only comes from years of shared experiences and memories, both joyful and otherwise. One thing Conor and Colin do have in common is a shared love for taking established rituals and cultural mores, and flipping them on their head. It is for all these reasons that Colin was chosen years ago to be the officiant who married Conor and Kendall. They have no doubt that he will approach the duty with the appropriate amount of reverence and mockery.
Jon Jasmin
Best Man
Conor and Jon met in high school working together at a local supermarket. They became fast friends, and it quickly became apparent that scheduling them both to work at the same time posed an existential threat to the reputation, respectability, and profit margins of said supermarket. Jon once got a shopping cart stuck in the driver’s seat of Conor’s car causing him to break off his rearview mirror trying to get it out. Jon once gifted Conor a truck that was so structurally unsound it became a legal liability.
JJ
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One time, Conor pushed Jon down to the ground in a mosh pit during a Papa Roach concert and it has remained one of the highlights of his life. These ridiculous stories remain emblematic of their enduring friendship. One night, Jon told Conor he would take a bullet for him if he had to. Which would’ve been a sweet thought, if not for the fact that Jon joined the military soon after, making that pretty much his job.
Moriah Cranston
Maid of Honor
Kendall and Moriah need to see each other at least once every other week in order to remain sane. Despite dating in the same circle in early high school and therefore engaging in petty competition with one another, Kendall and Moriah became close in late high school and after graduation, and are now inseparable. Moriah provides the opinionated, outspoken perspective to balance out Kendall’s people-pleasing and nod-along nature.
MC
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Hanging out is effortless and their shared love for animals only makes their friendship stronger. They’ve shared so many good times, and helped each other through their lows as they navigate the struggle that is adult life. They can count on each other for anything & everything.
Hailey Cook
Maid of Honor
Hailey and Kendall have been friends since they met in 4th grade! When Hailey told Kendall that she was running away from home at the age of 11, Kendall gave her a copy of the book “Hatchet” by Gary Paulsen. She took the book with her, jumped out of her window, and was promptly tackled in the front yard by her mom. They’ve stuck together through thick and thin, despite the fact that on the surface level, they come from very different worlds and often hold different points of view, which they work to help each other see.
HC
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Like sisters, though, they come together when it counts, like the time that Kendall drove over an hour to pick up Hailey from a party she didn’t want to be at while they were in the middle of a huge (but now meaningless and long-forgotten) fight. They've been by each others' side throughout all of their major milestones during their adolescent and early adult lives.
Natalie Richards
Bridesmaid
Kendall and Natalie first met when they took a class on Child Growth and Development at HCC in 2015. In fact, they sat next to each other and were the only two in the whole class who regularly asked questions and participated, and bonded over their “teacher’s pet” nature. By chance, Natalie began dating Conor's best man Jon shortly thereafter, solidifying her place in their lives.
NR
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Now, Natalie lives just minutes away from Conor and Kendall, spending time thrift shopping and sipping cocktails with them while Jon has been deployed. Natalie also nearly passed out from excitement when she found out she was going to be in the wedding.
Josie Carra-White
Groomswoman
Josie is one of the only reasons Conor has survived the early stages of his teaching career. Their regular afterschool decompression sessions never cease to be therapeutic, and occasionally enlightening. A favorite pastime of Conor’s has been to use the private messaging feature to try and make Josie burst out laughing during their interminable Zoom meetings. She has encountered many of the same struggles Conor has in teaching, except she had to navigate them all while also dealing with sexist hormonal teenage boys, as well as a judicial witch hunt, all while managing to raise a remarkable young son.
JCW
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Not to mention the fact that her family’s quintessential immigrant story remains a constant source of inspiration for Conor, and it constantly reminds him what’s really important to focus on when he teaches American history. Her grace and ability to excel under pressure should make all us all feel inadequate. Though they don’t work together anymore, Josie will always be a part of Conor’s life that he cherishes.
Anna Morrissey
Groomswoman
Like many siblings, Conor and Anna did not exactly see eye to eye in all stages of their lives. They are fundamentally very different people. Anna the quiet thoughtful poet, Conor the loud bombastic comedian. Anna the empathetic feeler, Conor the sardonic jester. Anna the sensitive second child, Conor the jeering and occasionally violent older brother. But even in 6th grade, at Conor’s peak of older brother assholery, he still fought in her defense when a group of his “friends” pushed her down to the ground and rode away. In contrast to Kendall’s 17,000 siblings, Anna is the only one Conor’s got. And as they’ve grown into adulthood, they’ve become an essential part of each other’s lives.
AM
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Anna persistently challenges Conor intellectually, which works because she has always been the smarter of the two. Anna pushes Conor to be more compassionate, always finding useful perspectives for looking at the world where others cannot. And Anna provides the affectionate derision which only a sibling can get away with. As Conor and Kendall prepare to settle down and occupy their place in the world together, Anna is still searching for where to leave her mark. But no matter where that is, or with whom, Anna will undoubtedly leave this earth better off than how she found it.