Wedding Party
Jessica Ingram
Bride Side, Lady in Charge
I was born and raised here in SoCal. I’m an equine vet tech (aka horse nurse), and I enjoy riding my three horses in all of my spare time! I met Sam at Cowboy Country about 8 years ago. We became fast friends. We bonded over our shared love of dancing and our crappy dating experiences. When I first met Devon, it was OBVIOUS that he was absolutely crazy about Sam. One of my favorite things is watching him watch her while she’s out on the dance floor! It’s the sweetest thing. I can’t wait to watch these two say “I do!”
Amanda Witte
Bride Side
Mandi, or as Sam affectionately refers to me as, Mandazzle 😘 is a long time friend of mine from our college days at Grand Valley. Residence life brought us together, as we thought we were qualified to provide guidance to the female freshman in the dorms where we were Resident Assistants. I think the joke was on us because we were the ones that probably learned the most that year and have continued to over the years. To be friends with Sam is to laugh most of the time she is around, to be encouraged to grow but remain true to your authentic self, to have your opinions thoughtfully challenged at times (aka disagree lol), but always be fiercely loved by her. It was a sad but understandable day when she headed off to California and left me in Grand Rapids, MI. I remain in GR working in the social work field and enjoying any time I can go out for a good meal with my husband Jon, and spend time with our puppy Poppi, friends and family. I look forward to visits from Sam because she brings the warmth of a sunny California day just by being herself. I am so excited she and Devon have found each other and am honored to be a friend to both!
Ken Mascaro
Bride Side
Living half my life in the northeast states (NY, PA, DE, MD) and half in Santa Barbara County has given me lifetime friends who come from high school days, college days, Air Force days, and finally technology days in software development for military systems. My most recent lifetime friends are Samantha and Devon. I met Samantha as my “landlady” when I needed a rental room starting in 2018 to stay weekdays while working at Edwards AFB. Weekends I returned to my Santa Maria home. A year after Samantha moved to Long Beach I was introduced to Devon and soon they were both joining me in Santa Maria for holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas. Our common interest in wine tasting weekends at vineyards in the Central Coast created even more reasons for them to visit and become my closest friends in California.
Jacob Haugen
Bride Side
Hey, I’m Jacob—Mantha’s younger brother. We grew up in Michigan, but we really started clicking once I moved to SoCal, where she showed me a whole new side of life (including an unforgettable night of line dancing at Cowboy Country). These days, I’m a software engineer who loves traveling, skiing, hiking, and playing guitar—basically anything that keeps me on my toes. As for Devon, I first bonded with him over code and chess, and it didn’t take long to realize he’s the calm, witty presence that perfectly fits Mantha’s bubbly energy. The two of them are the ultimate team. They share big dreams—like buying a house soon and starting a family—and I’m beyond excited to see them make it all happen. Cheers to my sister and my soon-to-be brother-in-law!
Melinda Latas
Bride Side
Melinda is a Texas transplant, dog mom, and the Chief Compliance Officer at the California State University System Headquarters. Melinda and Samantha met through the men in their lives (and yes, the man in Sam’s life was Devon, the lucky groom- who else?) From the beginning, Sam and Melinda bonded over the common ground of being women from out of state, states with very different social norms, foods, weather, and pastimes. Both found the transition to the SoCal life to be beautiful and rich. From yoga on the bluff, to wine tasting, to pool days and evenings by the fire- Sam even learned to appreciate sandy beaches with the right accessories 😜 You may not see Melinda or Sam leave the dance floor once the party starts on the big day. You can take the girl out of the country but you can’t take the country out of the girl!
Brennan Lee
Groom Side, Man in Charge
There aren’t many people in this world I call friend, but Devon Di Vito is for sure one. We met our freshman year of high school. I was the chubby, goofy black kid trying to recreate himself in Nick Cannon's image from Drum-line (before all the kids). He was this long haired kid that didn’t speak much and had alot of bandages 😂 As the year went along and we had multiple drumline practices together, I started to realize, this dude is funny! Like naturally funny! He would random say stuff that was accurate but could lead to awkward moments. And he wouldn’t back down when he knew he was right. Watching him a Dana Bunk, another band prodigy, go at each other was priceless entertainment (when it didn’t lead to punishment.) From there, we became snare brothers, and had some of the more memorable and meanful experiences of my high school years. Whenever we catch up it’s like nothing has changed, except our levels of maturity. He is still doing amazing things for himself and finally met an amazing person to go through his life with. I love him and I'm ecstatic for him!
Gregor Richardson
Groom Side
I am a digital entity who parks his physical body in Miami, Florida. I get paid to build and break things on the internet. I met Devon at Florida State University in one of the few semesters where I bothered attending classes. Devon and I bonded over a love of technology and a leaning towards counter culture. Knowing Devon meant I spent lots of time around pool halls. I have yet to win a single game. While visiting Long Beach I saw Devon and Sam together for the first time, and I knew right away their relationship was destined for wonderful things. It's been great seeing how they bring out the best in each other. It’s an honor to be with them as they celebrate their love.
Tyler Rupp
Groom Side
I am an engineer who lives in Long Beach with my wife Lillie and our 2 cats, Elsa and Ozzie. I moved down to Southern California a couple years ago and Devon was the first person I met. He quickly became my first friend in the area, and we would play lots of pool and watch movies together. I met Sam late one night as she and Devon were hoping to borrow a bottle of wine. It was a short interaction, but I could tell they were both very happy, and that feeling has lasted.
Nick Haugen
Groom Side
(Samantha’s oldest of 4 younger brothers) I was born, time passed, and I had a work trip take me to CA. Sam was there. Devon was there too. We met. There was amicable small talk. Devon and Sam chose to be with each other. That's a nice thing. We had shared meals and both functioned well together. The [Devon’s] library card holder thing was notable, and it was a quirky bit of information that was later made better by Devon grilling. (In short, he puts up with me and likes Devon a lot 😂)