"Johnny and I met our freshman year at Auburn University through a mutual friend and started dating second semester sophomore year. I remember thinking, "I'm going to marry this guy." Looks like I was right! On September 2, 2017 Johnny flew from Philadelphia, where he was currently working, to Alabama and surprised me by proposing in the courtyard of my home parish.
We knew when we were planning our wedding that we wanted all of our guests to have a great experience. Camp McDowell was the perfect place for our worlds to collide; our guests told us they had a great time relaxing, getting to know each other, and even hiking/exploring.
Our day was what we always dreamed it would be -- organic, rustic, and vintage-inspired with family and friends all around. In my bouquet, I included a gold hand-engraved coin my grandmother found with "I <3 E.P." on it that my grandfather had inscribed before they were even married. Our ceremony was in a stone chapel near a creek with beautiful vines over the altar's wooden cross.
My dad surprised me with a song he composed from scratch for our father-daughter dance. And our band, 2nd Coming, was the all-time hit of the evening; people are still talking about how great they were! The celebration ended perfectly with the performance of "Love Train" and ALL of our guests wrapped around the reception hall, we couldn't even see the end!"
-Rachel, Bride
Acknowledgements:
Catering: Happy Catering, Photography: Sweet Julep, Cake- Just Crumbs,Band- Second Coming, Venue- Camp McDowell, Floral-Thorne and Thistle, Menswear: Men’s Warhorse, Rentals: Special Events, Custom Gown- Leanne Marshall, Hair and Make-up: Danielle Bobrowski, Bridesmaids dresses: Purchased individually.