Jill & Michael
Wedding Party
Kelly Young
Queen of Honor
Youngest sister of the Bride, Kelly is currently a student at Roger Williams University. Most would never guess there's a whopping 7 years between the two (literally, this is a proven fact that most people think Kelly's older or the same age as Jill) and Kelly is mostly known for being exceptionally cool. Athletic, smart and always a hard worker; it's still never forgotten that Kelly is most people's go-to party invite. You can catch her showing up most dude's on and off the field or in the pool - or on the dance floor.
Kristen Arena
Queen of Honor
Kristen is the older sister of the Groom and his Queen of Honor. Michael was a groomsman and Jill was a bridesmaid in Kristen's wedding in April 2019. Kristen is the big sister every little brother wishes for. Never excluding Mike, she really was and is Mike's best friend. From stampeding around the house naked as young children, to teaching the importance of knowing all the lyrics to "Ridin' Dirty" by Chamillionaire, to always letting Mike crash on her couch in Manhattan during the summer of an unpaid internship, to then guiding him through the 'real world' with career advice; the two have always remained close. You can find Kristen on the dance floor with the rest of the all female Mola cousins or tasting wine with her husband Shane.
Jamie Young
Sister of the Bride
Middle sister of the bride, Jamie is just 4 years younger than Jill. Growing up alongside Jill in the early 90's when the Spice Girls (GIRL POWER!) ruled the world, Jamie is queen of music. Knowing every lyric to seemingly every song on the radio, from Guns 'N Roses to Backstreet Boys; to knowing every dance move from Spice World; Jamie is a not-so-undercover party animal. Jamie may be shy or quiet at first, but just like her sister's, she's bound to be found on the dance floor as soon as the first song comes on.
Nick Lattimore
Sous Chef to the Groom
Meeting through mutual friends, Nick hired Mike to be his intern in 2013. This internship turned 2nd full time job lead to many weekends spent together over the course of the next 4 years, all the while keeping their Mon-Fri jobs & social lives. Their time spent together was mostly on the road, listening to Led Zeppelin and Skepta, living off of WaWa's and gas station food, to work weekend-long lacrosse tournaments. They stayed almost exclusively at the luxurious Red Roof Inn and spent majority of their time surrounded by & working with young children & their parents in the heat. Their shared love of lacrosse bonded the two in a way only few are crazy enough to understand. Luckily, these days, their food, places of travel and time spent have all been upgraded.
Amanda Hatcher
Bestie of the Bride
Amanda is Jill's oldest friend, dating back to the stone ages of 2006 when they both were lifeguards in their hometown of Brewster, NY. After spending 7 days a week together all summer long, in horrible bright red 1 piece bathing suits, and teaching groups of 20 children at a time how to swim in 90 degree heat, it was no wonder they quickly became life long besties. Just as planned back in 2006, Jill served her rightful duty as bridesmaid in Amanda's wedding in September 2017. With a memory like none other, Amanda is (sadly for Jill) your go-to for all embarrassing stories, phases and life choices that the Bride has made in her past.
Boomer
Best Sir of the Groom
Boomer AKA Sean, met Mike in 3rd grade playing Sterling House basketball & both were pretty bad at it. But being short isn't the only thing they have in common. It was a shared passion for playing lacrosse really brought the two together in high school and every spring they would attend the final four. They seemingly also have a passion for manual labor, as they also went on to create S & M Landscaping (they're both aware of how that sounds...) during their summers home from college. They both even lived at Grandma Rose's together post-college.
Hallie Dunn
Bestie of the Bride
Hallie is Jill's best friend from college. Both graduating from Hobart & William Smith Colleges in 2013, the two became fast friends their sophomore year and now both live in NYC. With their partying days (mostly) behind them, they usually can be found sitting on a couch in sweatpants for hours usually laughing at their respective significant others who have decided to be besties too. Forever the most patient human in Jill's life, Hallie is one of the bride's most trusted confidants.
Sami Fisch
Bestie of the Couple
Sami quickly became close with the couple after moving into the apartment underneath theirs in Brooklyn, NY in the winter of 2018. What initially started as a tenant-alliance against a horrible landlord, quickly became a family dynamic of equal parts humans and animals. Sami is introduced most often as the couple's 'daughter' and has been exclusively accepted by Mason & Piper as parent #3, so when the leases ran out, it was top priority to find new apartments within walking distance. The goal was met, and the family sees each other almost daily, because if they don't the dogs get depressed...
Madison Stefanchik
Cousin of the Bride
Jill is currently a bridesmaid to Madison, who's wedding celebration is in September 2020. Finding friendship later in life, the virgo cousins realized they had much more in common than a strange history of putting on talent shows together for their entire extended family. Madison and Jill have successfully created their own family traditions over the last few years by staying in close touch these days. The cousin's host one another every season, for the entirety of a weekend, switching on and off. An outdoorsy hiking fanatic with a love for emo punk rock, Madison is also she wife of a beer master extraordinaire and lives in what us NYC-er's would consider "upstate" New York.
Rob Hammond
Best Sir of the Groom
Hammy aka Rob, is one of the groom's favorite people to hang with. Also growing up in Stratford, CT, the two share decades worth of memories. Rob has remained one of Mike's most trusted and loyal friends. He is truly apart of the Arena family, just as much as Mike is apart of the Hammond family. From attending underground punk rock shows to having cookouts with Rob's family at their Lordship beach house. It's not difficult to love Rob or laugh at his jokes.
Julie Rooney
Bestie of the Bride
Julie and Jill grew up in the same town, going to the same schools their entire childhood, but it wasn't until they were unexpected roomies in China at the end of their senior year of high school that they became close. Since then, they've been in a long distance best friendship, as Julie is the ultimate traveler and hasn't lived in the USA for more than a season at a time. The two have now been to China, Canada and Scotland together and only see each other once a year if they're lucky. Currently residing in England, Julie is still one of Jill's most trusted and loyal friends. Silly, witty and wildly intelligent, Julie is one of the most caring and understanding people you could ever meet.
David Feudo
Best Sir of the Groom
Of all the groomsmen, David has known Michael the longest. They share memories of running around with underwear on their heads, and joining in on family vacations to the FL Keys, Cape Cod or Rhode Island. The two spent most of their time at skate parks or learning something new and/or potentially illegal with "the ladies" aka Paula and Lynn their FL neighbors or spending the weekend at Grandma Rose's.
Melanie DeVuyst
BESTIE OF THE BRIDE
Melanie and Jill met at HWS, but became closer when studying abroad in Wales and traveling through the UK together. Upon graduating, they also both became Executive Assistants, both living throughout CT and NYC at the same times. As life continued to put them in the same place at the same time, they experienced much of their early twenties together bar hopping, concert going and friend group blending. Most importantly, both girls are dog-parents and understand how to spoil a pit-mix fur baby. Melanie now lives with her fiance in sunny California, and Jill is a bridesmaid in her wedding in October 2020.
Shane Chaplin
Best Sir in Law
On April 18, 2019 Shane and Michael officially became brothers. It was the day Shane married Mike's older sister and Queen of Honor, Kristen. Since first sharing a quesadilla at a Bloomberg event, the two have continued to grow their relationship around food. Shane is not only entrusted as taste tester, but he also gives Mike some of his greatest dish ideas.
Charlotte Pennington
Flower Child
Charlotte met Jill at a college party in May of 2011, when Charlotte was just 4 years old. Jill happened to be good friends with Charlotte's much older cousin who was graduating that spring, and decided to play with the little girl at the party for a bit. Within just a month, Jill had left her job at Tonetta Lake and was teaching Charlotte how to swim and babysitting full time in Greenwich, CT. It's now been 8+ years, and the two treat each other much more like family than anything else. Charlotte has been promised since she was 4 years old that she could be Jill's flower girl and now the time has come! Charlotte loves to ride horses, swim and be silly, just like Jill, making them best friends and best almost sisters for life.
Nolan & Graeme Connolly
Ring Bearer's
Nolan & Graeme are the son's of Jill's oldest cousin, Blair. When Jill was younger, Blair was the ultimate babysitter and pseudo big sister. It's really no surprise the two cousins (and Blair's husband, Chris) went to Hobart & William Smith Colleges and continued to stay close throughout their lives. Jill is now most often referred to as Auntie Jill in the Connolly household and even holds the coveted position of God Mama to Graeme. Silly, hockey-obsessed and fully of energy, all should be prepared to have their hearts stolen by these two HWS-bound studs.