Emma and Will were married on a beautiful November day in Bethesda, Maryland, at St. Elizabeth Catholic Church.
Emma’s dad had the biggest smile on his face all day. They were so sweet together!
Emma shares one of her favorite moments, “Saying our vows, I was so nervous I was holding my breath. Then I looked over Will’s shoulder and saw all the grooms men and the best man, Grant, smiled and nodded at me, and then I looked back into Will’s eyes and a flurry of all the memories we share and all my hopes and dreams about our future memories poured into my heart and I got pretty choked up with happy tears because it was an intense overwhelming feeling of joy.”
Emma and Will met on the Purdue Crew team. She shares, “We were at a regatta in Tennessee and Will saw me running along the race course and made a point to get to know me. After much persistence from Will, I agreed to grab a coffee with him and I think it’s important to credit Will for proposing this as an option since he does not like the taste, smell or flavor of coffee. Then our first date was at the rowing dungeon in Lambert Fieldhouse at Purdue. I’d agreed to meet him at the erg so he could teach me some of his erging techniques. After a workout we went to my place and I cooked him spaghetti. The rest is history.”
She continues with the story of their propsal, “Both Will and I are competitive and I was lucky enough to continue my rowing career past college and become a two-time Paralympic rower and silver medalist. Will and my family were able to come cheer me on when I competed in the 2012 London Paralympic Games. I’d been avoiding ice cream and pizza in the months leading up to the games to make sure I was in tip top shape so, after our final race and a few glasses of celebratory champagne, Will lured me away to Windsor Castle for a well-deserved ice cream cone. When we got there, he held me close and asked me to marry him. So not only did I get an ice cream cone, I got a diamond ring too!”
We had so much fun walking around Georgetown taking photos.
“My wedding style,” Emma shares, “was inspired by the book The Giving Tree, by Shel Silverstein. We wanted it to be elegant but not too fancy, and traditional but not stuffy. Will and I also have a wonderfully talented family so it was our families who made the biggest contributions to the style of the wedding. Will’s dad and his brother Stephen actually cut down a large tree from their backyard in Michigan and used it to make the wood slices. They transported the sanded wood slices to my sister Anna in Indianapolis who stained them and used wood burning to carve W+E on each of them. My mother planned, designed and arranged all the flowers for the wedding, which was not only a huge help, but also a wonderful touch and sentiment. When I walked down the aisle at the church with my dad, I carried my mom’s spirit in one arm and my dad’s in the other. It was perfect. My mom was by far the largest contributor to the wedding style. She made the lace table runners, vases for the table tops, my veil, hair beret, and added grandma Andreoni’s buttons to my fur shawl.”
Emma shares another of her favorite moments was dancing with my dad during the father daughter dance to A Whole New World from the Aladdin soundtrack. “Dad and I would often dance together when I was growing up. I remember twirling around in a yellow dress and also doing a do-si-do together at the annual father daughter square dance. So to dance with him while I was wearing my wedding dress was a major milestone for us. It was by far my favorite and one I’ll never forget!”
After the reception Will and Emma threw an after-party downstairs at the bowling alley. It was so much fun!
Congratulations Emma and Will!
Check out more photos in the slideshow.
Special thanks to the vendors:
Ceremony Venue: St. Elizabeth Catholic Church
Reception Venue: Pinstripes Bowling and Bocce Bistro, Inc. Georgetown, DC.
Flower designer: Lynn Preuschl, Mother of the Bride
Florist: Potomac Wholesale Flowers
Bridesmaid Dresses Designer/Shop: Bella Bridesmaid and Two Birds Bridesmaid
Bride’s Dress Designer/Shop: Love Coutour Bridal
Bride’s Shoes: Naturalizer
Makeup and Hair: Bridal Beauty To Go
Groom and Groomsmen Attire: Men’s Wearhouse
DJ: Bill Izer, Source4Entertainment
String Quartet: Sage String Quartet
Cantor and Pianist: Marty Cosgrove
Cake: Stella’s Bakery
Cake Topper, Wedding Hanger, Decor: Anna Preuschl, Sister of the Bride
Invitations and Graphic Art Design: Kirk Preuschl
Photographer: Jessica Schmitt Photography
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