Phoebe & Zac
Wedding Party
Lauren Massey
Maid of Honor
Lauren and I met when we both lived in the same building in Portland from 2019-2021. When Covid hit, her and her (then fiance) Taylor would host backyard happy hours. Lauren also invited me over to watch The Bachelor and drink wine and dream about normalcy. We became very close and still watch bach, do yoga together, go on morning walks just about every Thursday, and go on lots of outdoor adventures. Taylor and Zac became friends over the years, and Taylor will be one of Zac’s groomsmen. Lauren and Taylor recently became parents to a beautiful baby named Ellie, born 4/15/2025. Lauren is the best organizer of fun and she’s always down to party (as long as everyone leaves by 9). I’m so excited to have her as my Maid of Honor!
Melanie Walsh
Bridesmaid
Melanie and I first met during Christmas in 2017 when she came to Maine with my brother to meet the family. I immediately knew she was so cool. Melanie and my brother Willie have been married since March, 2020 and they just welcomed their first daughter Blair into the world in March. Blair will hopefully make an appearance at the ceremony as a “flower girl” of sorts, and Willie will be in Zac’s grooms party. Melanie is so fun and sweet, and I love visiting her, Willie and Blair in Vero Beach, Florida. I’m dubbing her the wedding pro since I think she’s been in more wedding than any of us combined. It will absolutely be a vibe with Melanie there!
Eugenia Lostri-Walsh
Bridesmaid
Eugenia and I first met (I believe!!) in 2021 when she joined my family on Martha’s Vineyard for a vacation/wedding. I knew Euge would be an amazing match for my brother Jack, and yet was perplexed how my obnoxious brother managed to pull such a wonderful, witty and dazzling person. She and Jack were married in March 2024 in Washington DC, where they met and still live. This past March, we celebrated their marriage with a ridiculously fun wedding part 2 in Euge’s hometown of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Eugenia has such depth of character, and I love having her as a sister-in law.
Leah Bevins
Bridesmaid
Leah and I met in 1st grade, meaning we’ve known each other through middle school awfulness, high school boyfriends, transitions to college, figuring out our lives and who we are, cross-country and cross-the-world moves, and finding our perfect partners. Leah and I have been friends through so many milestones, and I’m excited that exactly 364 days after Zac and my wedding, Leah and her fiance Cody will be married in Rangeley. Leah is compassionate, considerate and self-assured. She’s the best kind of person to have by your side for a wedding, and not just because she’s fiercely organized and has the most thorough emergency kit. I’m so lucky to have a lifelong friend like Leah!
Julia von Ehr
Bridesmaid
Julia and I became close despite (or in spite of?) sharing 550 square feet when we were roommates on State Street. Julia is hilarious, fascinating, and so loved. She’s frighteningly good at Catan, extremely comfortable (and prepared!) in nature, and a fantastic curator of memes. I will always remember getting a call from Julia asking me to send her a photo of her health insurance card. She had just broken her ankle rock climbing a mile from the car, but had fastened a professional splint out of a Crazy Creek. She almost seemed excited to put her new Wilderness Fist Responder certification to good use. I believe this is why Julia’s (concerned) mother said she’s lucky Julia has me... but I feel lucky to have Julia.
Alex McDonald
Bridesmaid
Alex and I met in the summer of 2015 when we played ultimate frisbee summer league together. At the end of that summer, we celebrated my 21st and her 26th birthday together at hibachi and Amigos. It’s so wild to think about life ten years ago - Tinder was shiny and new, statement necklaces and business attire had us in a chokehold, and dumb frisbee house parties were the best. Since then, I’ve been her photographer, florist, and witness for her micro-wedding at Kettle Cove, I’ve photographed her pregnancy announcement, wedding, new born photos, and many Christmas cards, I’ve celebrated four birthdays with her son Brooks, and we still find time for getting pedicures or eating noodles. I’m so lucky to have a friend exactly five years older, paving the way.
Travis Wheeler
Best Man
Being someone’s identical twin affords one some privilege. No, I’m not referring to the time I used Travis’s ID to buy beer when we were freshly 21. I’m referring more generally to the accumulated life experiences and the trust and bonds we created during our first eighteen years, essentially attached at the hip. My young life was marked by playing football in the lake, dragging Travis through the snow on a sled, and soundtracked by audiobooks. We’ve nerded out over such a wide variety of things, collected football cards, and played and watched hundreds of hours of video games together. Not to be dramatic, but my relationship with Travis has made me the man I am today. Though we’ve spent a little less time together over the last ten years, we have the rest of our lives to live together, and I can’t imagine a better best man standing, or sitting, by my side.
Cam Macri
Groomsman
There’s no telling how familial relationships will bear out. You see, you can’t pick your family. Sometimes that creates tension, and other times it creates magic. Though we led most of our childhoods about as separately, geographically, as two people could be, Cam and the Macri’s always made an effort to come up to Bethel and out to the lake. I am so thankful for that. As if by some alchemical process, Cam and I have only become closer over the years. From running around York Beach behind older cousins, crashing a wedding, celebrating lacrosse victories and defeats, and taking fireworks off of the dome, Cam and I have covered a lot of ground over the years. I am proud to call him not only my cousin, but one of my closest friends.
Holden Cookson
Groomsman
College and Holden are two ideas that I really can’t separate, which is funny because Holden and I only overlapped a single year at the University of Maine at Farmington. Even funnier considering that year wasn’t my best. I didn’t go off to college with all of my best friends, or with a sports team to welcome me with open arms. Farmington was a pretty lonely place for me in 2016. Ultimate frisbee worked to fill that lonely place for me, and so did Holden. In the least corny way possible, Holden took me under his wing. Seeing his confidence and charismatic approach to life has been inspirational for me. He and I have been steadfast friends since my freshman year of college, though luckily our friendship today transcends that woeful beginning. Holden and I have shared a lot over the last 10 years, and he will be happy to know that even though he may own a house, and I a guest bedroom, he is always welcome on my couch. He was instrumental in planning an awesome bachelor party weekend, and I am proud that he will be standing with me during this incredible wedding.
Nate Buck
Groomsman
While Nate’s dad grew up in Bethel, graduating from Telstar High School one year later than my own father, and (little known fact) Nate’s family rented a neighboring house on Songo Pond for a couple of summers during his childhood, it wasn’t until 2018, during my junior year of college, that Nate and I crossed paths. Nate was living with Holden, and I was freshly 21 and visiting Portland on a near-weekly basis. My impression of Nate was an accommodating, if somewhat reserved, host, the near exact opposite of Holden and me at the time. When I graduated from college a year or so later, I truly had no plan in mind for the next chapter of my life. Out of the blue, Holden messaged me and asked if I wanted to move in with Nate and another mutual friend. Undeterred by his relative anonymity, I jumped at the chance and didn’t regret it for a minute. Nate and I never so much as argued through our six years of cohabitation. Through entire summer league and club ultimate seasons, a global pandemic, living with Phoebe and I for three years, some incredible trivia victories, and being the most loving cat uncle of all time, Nate has more than secured his position here as an amazing friend.
Taylor Massey
Groomsman
Taylor is perhaps the unlikeliest member of this motley crew. I didn’t meet him in utero, share an aunt, or meet him drunk at college. He didn’t recruit me to play Ultimate Frisbee, I didn’t live with him for six years, and he isn’t about to become my brother. There’s an alternate reality out there where Taylor is just in my life as Phoebe’s best friend’s husband. That alternative evaporated for me the first time Taylor and I spent more than five minutes hanging out. Shockingly, this prodigal hang was actually at Taylor’s wedding, an event which I was invited to, across the country, mind you, despite having perhaps shared 25 words with the guy. While the women in our lives did who knows what (drink wine), the men in the wedding and one tag-along joined Taylor at a local brewery hosting a trivia night. Taylor and I vibed out, and out of 26 teams, we came in second place. From that point on, a connection was forged. We’ve played our share of trivia, watched many movies, drank many Sazeracs, and generally tooled around more than our fair share. Taylor is the life of the party, and I’m blessed to call him my friend.
Marshall Maxsimic
Groomsman
Who the hell makes college kids attend gym class? While that question might feel rhetorical, the unfortunate answer, at least in the fall of 2015, is The University of Maine at Farmington. While an 8 AM gym class might sound awful, let me tell you: it was. That is, until I got to know the guys in that fateful gym class. From running the mile with Spencer Dewitt, to Brian slapping poor Jared on the chest, and opting for pool time (in the morning??), that class was an amazing social outlet during a pretty tough time. If you were to tell me that ten years later, Marshall and I would be meeting up for breakfast, hitting up Sea Dogs games, and walking to yard sales together, I would have just shaken my head. While many college friendships come and go, our friendship has grown over the years, and Marshall is one of my most cherished people.
Willie Walsh
Groomsman
When I think of my relationship with Willie, the first thing I think of is Pop-A-Shot. You know the mini-hoop basketball game most commonly found in bars and arcades? The first time I spent extended time with Willie (and felt that I wasn’t just his sister’s boyfriend) was at a Walsh family wedding in 2022. Phoebe, Phoebe’s parents, Willie, Jack, and I all stayed in an Airbnb together. While this would have been an incredible opportunity for full family bonding through card games, charades, or fishbowl, there was one significant problem. In the basement in the underventilated TV/game room, there was a fully functioning Pop-A-Shot game complete with a scoreboard. Willie and I may have gotten a little obsessed with achieving a high score. We played for hours and forged a bond through that simple game. Willie and I share that competitive streak, a love of fantasy novels, and an easy sense of humor. I am so excited to be able to call Willie my brother.
Jack Walsh
Officiant
My first echoes of Jack’s presence were reverent words from his sister, my fiancée, Phoebe. Whenever she had a question that couldn’t be handled independently, it was to Jack she turned. While at first I might have been sceptical of this reliance. How could one guy be the go-to for so many things? While I’m still hard pressed to tell you what Jack does for work, I do know that Jack leads a rich and interesting life. He is fluent in many languages, completed his undergrad in South Korea, married in Argentina, and still holds incredibly strong friendships from his hometown of Yarmouth, Maine. More importantly perhaps Jack made the trek up to Maine for my bachelor party where he was exposed en masse to friends and family from all parts of my life. Jack rolled with every punch, and acquitted himself admirably on a four hour (foodless) canoe trip. Jack is a man of many talents, trusted by all, and especially by Phoebe and I. Jack will be marrying us in October, and I’m so happy to call him a brother.
Boba
Cat
The saddest part of our wedding day is that Boba (WJ Kitten, Wobe, Wobus, Bean Bean) won't be there to celebrate with us. She's become brave enough to venture into our neighbor's yard's on her harness, but we thought Bethel might be a stretch. Boba gets an honorable mention as the absolute light of our lives. She may have been free, but she has became entirely priceless. Her favorite things are wet food (slop), fishing rod with worm toy, sniffing new feet, lying on the picnic table, fake chewing plastic to get our attention, collapsing on the floor to get our attention, zoomies, Uncle Nate, her cat tree, and us. It's worth noting that she absolutely despises nail clippers, lawnmowers, Violet, and late dinner. If she had thumbs and bravery, she would be the ring barer.