Wedding Party

Katrina Olson

Maid of Honor

We met at 16 and 19 and hated each other... until we didn't. We became friends and as close as sisters over the last twenty years.

Jeff Millett

Best Man

No matter how old your friendship is, “friends gather no dust.” Jeff is my oldest friend. We met at Mittineague elementary school in West Springfield in the early 80s. One September morning, Jeff who sat (alphabetically) in front of me decided he was bored with the early morning teachings and would rather have a conversation with me. "What's your name?" "Where do you live?" "Do you have any brothers or sisters?" "Do you have any video games?' Me, being painfully shy and fearing the wrath of our teacher but also unable to resist Jeff's amiable personality I quietly answered the flurry of questions while trying not to alert the teacher. I whispered my name and spelled it out because others in the class had the same name but I pridefully spelled it differently. We came to the conclusion that we only lived about a five-minute walk from each other and that a treacherously busy two-lane road was our only obstacle. In a shared whisper, he excitedly exposed that he was the youngest of three brothers and I had proclaimed I was the oldest with a brother and sister. I timidly disclosed that I had an Intellivision as it was not as cool as an Atari in some circles but with relief, my confession stimulated a whole new line of questions from an overexcited Jeff. We walked home after school that day, bantering like old friends. Whenever I get to hang out with Jeff today, we pick up in conversion just like that first day only the questions are different and we don't have to whisper.

Michelle Alder

Bridesmaid

We met in third grade, because we sat in the same row. Sleepovers, A League of Their Own, fondue parties, and so many other memories over the last thirty years!

Eric Roberts

Groomsman

Ashley Cataldo

Bridesmaid

Thanks to a coworker's maternity leave, we were put in the same office for a few months and discovered we could talk for hours and get no work done. She's listened to every story about my relationship since day 1!

Matt Millett

Groomsman

"In the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years." -Abraham Lincoln. I've always envied the way Mat can live life with confidence when I approached it with timidness. He is the friend who says, "try this food", "taste this drink", "speak up for yourself", and "talk to that girl". I needed those little pushes back then to get me out of my shell. Even if an overly-sensitive me was butt-hurt about it. I met Mat the same day I first met Jeff. Jeff and I had been walking home from school the first day we had met and we were continuing our conversations from class while veering off course to explore back ally ways and climbing anything that could potentially be scaled. We were balancing on street curbs waving broken sticks in hand when Jeff suddenly froze and pointed up the street and said, "look those are my older brothers right now". A worried mother had sent a search party of her two oldest boys to find her youngest boy. I guess somehow our 10-minute walk from school had turned into more than two hours. Mat and Eric were angry to be sent on this serious errand but I think they were more perplexed. "Why the fuck it take you so long to walk home?" "Who is this?" Today I might not be as confident as Mat but, because of Mat, I do like to try new foods and experiences. I'm always down for anything life has to offer. I talked to a girl. And, I'm marrying her this October.

Ruth Ward

Junior Bridesmaid

My daughter and best friend. When Shawn proposed, Ruthie's response was "Finally." If there's anyone more excited than myself and Shawn, it's definitely Ruthie!

Adam Crosby

Groomsman

“Life was meant for good friends and great adventures.” Adam went to kindergarten with Jeff's older brother Eric. I remember meeting Adam for the first time when he visited the Millett's one day with a skateboard in hand and a sweaty sleeveless t-shirt. They all had their history with Adam and I felt a little out of place. I accepted why they were all friends but I felt I needed to play catch-up. We weren't in school together but our paths did cross when we would all get together to play Dungeons and Dragons. Equipped with candy bars, Cool Ranch Doritos, and comically large sodas from our local convenience store aptly named, Food Bag we would stretch our imaginations adventuring through will-o-wisp-infested swamps, skeleton-filled tombs, and trap-laden mazes collecting treasures. In one particular D&D session we were rolling dice to win a magic item called a Cloak of Elvinkind which, Adam greatly wanted. With a victory shout, I won the roll. Seeing Adam's disappointment I decided to forfeit the item to Adam. With wide eyes and disbelief, Adam accepted the jester with elation prompting him to sit closer to me and showing me how he could use the new item to benefit the group. We continued talking more than we had ever in the past about things like video games and comic books. That night we asked our parents if I could sleep over at Adams's house where time and again I would sleep over. Relinquishing an imaginary gift rewarded me with a real and true friend. I rolled a 20!

Gus Ward

Son of the Bride

This guy will be giving his mom away to his new stepdad. Gus is sensitive and is happy to see his mom happy and can't wait to have Shawn a legally binding member of our family!

Dave Wessinger

Groomsman

O'Brian Tomalin

Officiant