Shannon and Nick
Wedding Party
Shannon
Bride
Self explanatory - soon to be Nick's official "Mrs"
Nick
Groom
Also self explanatory - soon to be Shannon's official "Mr."
Colby Matevia
Maid of Honor
Shannon's younger sister and one of her very best friends. Too many memories to list but a few favorites include playing endless amounts of Barbies and My Little Ponies in the basement where no one else was allowed to play with us because "they didn't play correctly", laughing hysterically during "upside down" Mario on the couch, singing Destiny Child and Ace of Base songs in our rooms and as we grew older, we bonded over going to Canada and killing it on the dance floor or binge-watching dumb reality shows! Shannon cherishes her relationship with Colby and sees it as one of the best parts of her life.
Kaytee Bellows
Bridesmaid
Shannon's oldest friend (and one of her favorites) whose played many roles over the years...from make-believe dress up pals, playing kitchen and stuffing fake food in our shirts and then "burping" to empty out our bellies, being Girl Scout roomies fighting over the top bunk bed who then graduated to European travel buddies...and let's not forget all our partner in crime moments over the last 34 years! Even though we don't get to see each other as much as we'd like, our friendship always picks up right where we left off. Katie is seriously like a second sister!
Logan Moore
Bridesmaid
Logan is one of Shannon's best friends and is someone that always gives great advice... and not only that, she is one of the biggest supporters of her and Nick's relationship. Logan is one of the strongest people they know and even though she's only a year older, she's someone that Shannon has always liked going to for advice! When Shannon and Logan first met, they didn't talk very much, but realized a year or two later that they were both intimidated by each other for different reasons....thank goodness for a night out in Ann Arbor that led to those feelings disappearing and to a great friendship that means the world to Shannon (and Nick)!
Hannah Olds
Bridesmaid
Hannah is another woman who is also one of Shannon's best friends who she met through her sister, Colby...we "eventually" (resting b*itch face, anyone?? LOL) bonded over our frequent trips to Canada to go out dancing during our college years and the friendship has only grown from there! The other thing that has grown over the years is my fear of Hannah's driving - good lord is it scary being in the backseat of her car, but she's always gotten us to where we need to go :)!! I know if I ever need anything though (other than a relaxing ride somewhere), Hannah is just a phone call away and I love her to pieces!!
Stacie Pianowski
Bridesmaid
One of Shannon's best friend's since Junior High...neither Stacie or Shannon have any recollection how they met other than their year books being signed by each other in 7th grade! Over the years, they shared a love of reading and swapped countless books over the years (thanks for insisting that I read the first Harry Potter book when I kept resisting - you were right - it was a great series), going to late night movies every week and going out to the bars during their college years.
Kara Folas
Bridesmaid
Nick's sister! From Nick's perspective, when Kara was brought home from the hospital, Nick's first though was "she's very loud!" and not much has changed since (although Kara's perspective on Nick is that he is also very loud). And from Shannon's perspective, Kara always has the greatest looking hair - years ago Kara tried to show me how to curl my hair with a straightening iron, but to this day I am still at a loss on how to do what she does! So here's to many more years of bugging Kara for hair tutorials! As Nick's sister and Shannon's soon to be sister-in-law, we are very happy to have her standing next to us on our big day.
Nate Bruttell
Best Man
Nick and Nate met briefly at the dorms at Western (we don't talk about that meeting) but really met and became friends while working at Pita Pit in Kalamazoo. We bonded over love of hockey, video games, nerd culture, and almost everything else. Frequently mistaken as brothers, Nick is proud to call Nate his wallet buddy and Best Man.
Ray Marcil
Groomsman
Nick and Ray met at Pita Pit (that was a fortuitous job!) and Ray almost immediately got Nick back into playing hockey. As Ray and Nate lived together, the three of us were always getting into some kind of trouble in Kalamazoo. Ray is the ultimate friend, and eternally a wallet buddy.
Chris Folas
Groomsman
Nick's first and oldest friend. As kids, we spent all our time either playing hockey on the driveway, or trying to beat Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on our Sega Genesis. Despite 12 years of professional cooking experience, Chris can still cook Nick under the table any day of the week.
Dave Randall
Groomsman
Nick and Dave met through Shannon, and quickly realized they had a ton in common- movies, video games, and a strong love of binge watching TV shows while eating a whole package of Oreos. I'm sure that last one won't come back to haunt us later in life.
Kathy Folas
Mother of the Groom
My Mom and my biggest cheerleader. My Mom is the reason I'm successful, she always pushed me to be better and do better because she knew I had it in me, even if I didn't see it.
Alex Folas
Father of the Groom
My Dad and my role model. He has taught me so many things throughout the years it would be impossible to list them all here. He's taught me how to be a good man better than I could ever have done so by myself. Also, all the tricks to getting down to a Wings game, where to park, and how to expertly navigate the Joe.
Diane Chambers
Mother of the Bride
One of the Shannon's best friends and her rock. My mom is one of my ultimate role models and I love her beyond words. Her endless amounts of love and support is present in every part of my life and I don't know what I'd do without her. Thank you so much for everything you do for me and for us! And thank you for being so supportive during the crazy wedding planning process - although it wasn't always fun at times, I appreciate everything more than I could ever put into words!! Without all your help, our wedding vision wouldn't have been able to come to life!
Mike Matevia
Father of the Bride
Shannon's dad and the first man she ever loved and someone she has looked up to since she was a little girl. He is also taking on the very important role of helping her not trip on the way down the aisle to marry Nick! (Everyone that knows Shannon well, is aware the she has her share of clumsy moments so tripping is a legitimate concern!). Love you dad - and as I always say, you can't ever claim I'm not your kid since I resemble you far too much for that to ever be possible :)
Kevin Chambers
Officiant
Shannon's Step-Father who now holds the very important title of "Minister" now that he received his uniquely addressed letter in the mail :). We couldn't think of a better person to marry us...we wanted someone who knew both of us and we think we found the best role to make sure he was included in our wedding day!
Merlin
Fur Child #1
Our lovable, yet shy, anxious little guy who we got at the end of October of 2018. He loves to chase after balls, cuddle, get belly rubs and jump up for pets (sometimes poking our eyes out in the process)!
Oliver
Fur Child #2
Our sassy, stubborn little dude, (and Merlin's brother). He loves playing with toys, making messes and breaking mommy's things around the house. We see the potential though and look forward to him coming out of his shell and bonding with us since we've only had him since the end of January.
Buddy (Mister Budders)
Our Best Guy who is no longer with us
He was our little man and we miss him everyday. He was supposed to be involved in all the parts of our wedding day, from the getting ready photos to being at our reception...Heck, he was the one who chose our wedding date! We plan to honor him as best as we can to help keep his memory alive!