just married

Shawn and Jess met at Ohio Northern University in the Founder's Hall Freshmen Lounge. They became fast friends and started dating on October 19, 2013. From there, they experienced 5+ moves back and forth between two states, moved to a new city for their first real adult jobs, and most importantly adopted a shelter cat together that cemented their foundation as a team. Fast forward almost 8 years later from that fateful encounter in the freshmen lounge and Shawn proposed to Jess at the Chicago Botanic Gardens on September 21st, 2021. Given the uncertainty of the world with the state of the pandemic and the frenzy of the wedding industry booking everything in sight for 2022 and beyond, Shawn and Jess decided to do things a little differently. They found a wonderful, private bed-and-breakfast nestled in an idyllic corner of Vermont, scooped up a couple members of their respective families, and recited vows to one another that promised to build upon what they had already started creating together: a shared life and future, with more adventures to come. If you were to ask Shawn and Jess about their elopement, they would tell you the same thing: It was perfect and everything they could have asked for. However, they always intended to have a follow-up celebration with their friends and families to make the event more complete. They are thrilled to have a large party to commemorate their marriage and to say thank you to every person who has supported and loved them throughout their journey and beyond.