Wedding Party
Ben Meyer
Best Man
Mat and Ben met in 6th grade and quickly become two of the closest friends and biggest trolls in the whole school. They worked on video projects together (for school and for fun), ran cross country together, and played in the school orchestra together (poorly). Nowadays they reunite regularly to tackle challenging backpacking treks (often giving up before finishing) or traveling to exotic destinations around the globe.
Cheris Black
Maid of Honor
Cheris and Ella met at age 14 on the first day of boarding school and have been best friends ever since. Despite living in different cities (or countries) throughout adulthood, they've always maintained their friendship and visited each other as often as possible. Ella and Cheris recently went on a 2 week trip to Morocco and Belgium together. Cheris lives in Germany and is flying back to the US to be Ella's Maid of Honor in October.
Daniel Rasmussen
Groomsman
Mat and Dan met when Daniel was born and have been brothers ever since! They have had way too many good memories over the years to count. From family ski vacations, to overly aggressive pillow fights, to playing with their childhood cats (Mittens and Tiger), to arguing over computer time, to sledding down their dangerously steep backyard hill. Growing up is always more fun with a little brother around.
Claire Vavrus
Bridesmaid
Claire and Ella have known each other since college in Wisconsin where they both majored in Geological Engineering. The funny part of their story is that they weren't friends in college at all! Fate brought them together when they independently decided to attend Colorado School of Mines for grad school and ended up being roommates for 4 years in Golden. Claire and Ella have many memories together including traveling to England and Wales last year.
Alex Willenbrink
Groomsman
Willy and Mat met in middle school and were classmates in high school and college. Despite having to share a bunk bed together in college at Mizzou, they have stayed best friends and traveled to the furthest corners of the globe together, from Lofoten Norway, to Kathmandu Nepal, to Venice Italy, and shared innumerable laughs along the way.
Ali Farquharson
Bridesmaid
Ali and Ella met on a study abroad program in France in 2016. They stayed in touch through the rest of college and coincidentally both moved to Denver for grad school. They've been best friends ever since. Last year, they spent a few days together in Venice, eating pizza and pasta and drinking lots of Hugo Spritzs!
Tom Aunins
Groomsman
Mat and Tom (the names) are almost palindromes, and similarly, Mat and Tom (the people) thought that they were almost common-law married after living together for 5 years throughout grad school. Turns out that's not how common law marriage works, but still 5 years is a long time. Throughout those years Mat and Tom have had many grand adventures, in Colorado, Utah, and even the Himalayas.
Rahel Dean-Pelikan
Bridesmaid
Rahel and Ella were in the same lab at Colorado School of Mines. They spent 10+ hours a day every day together for 2 years in grad school. Despite Rahel moving away from Colorado a few years ago, their friendship has not faltered! Ella spent 10 days in Alaska last year visiting Rahel when she lived in Anchorage. Rahel now lives in Australia and will be flying in to be Ella's bridesmaid.
Ankur Sarkar
Groomsman
Mat and Ankur met in grad school at CU Boulder and have been close friends ever since. Together they have attempted to ascend some of the worlds most sandbagged (more difficult than they are labeled) bouldering problems and failed almost every time. Some say the pair are best known for wearing Hawaiian shirts to the Grand Canyon (along with Alex and Tom) and asking for directions to the beach.
Sonya Grohowski
Bridesmaid
Ella originally met Sonya through Claire, but they didn't become close until one year when they were the only ones staying in Denver for Christmas. Ella and Sonya spent Christmas together cooking dinner and drinking boxed wine. This was also the night that Ella matched with Mat on a dating app!
Alex Jenkins
Groomsman
Mat and Alex met in grad school and worked in the same lab together. They have tackled many questionable challenges together, including hiking the Boulder Skyline Traverse (Alex drank a beer at the top of each of the 5 peaks), ascending the Middle Teton in spring without any winter gear, and most recently, running(Mat)/supporting(Alex) the Taco Bell 50k ultramarathon.
Marissa Schrader
Bridesmaid
Marissa is Ella's cousin and friend since day one! Despite Marissa being 10 months older than Ella, Marissa always inherited her taller cousin's hand-me-downs when they were kids. Some of the best moments of their childhoods were cousin sleepovers during the holidays. You should ask to see the 30 minute home video Marissa and Ella wrote and directed together as kids!
Nick Bergesch
Officiant
Nick and Mat met in high school, and over the years has been the most reliable friend you will ever meet. He's always down for a good time, whether it be hiking, camping, or traveling the world. He is the ultimate planner and an organizational wizard: without this guy, none of our amazing trips (Nepal, Italy, Norway, Yosemite, Banff, and manyyy more) would have happened!