Emily and Evan's Colorful, Cooperative Wedding in Tunbridge, Vermont
One of my biggest dreams as a child living in the country was to have my friends live right up the street. I imagined all the adventures we’d have together on the countryside we shared and how nice it would be to not have to drive to see them. While the wish was never granted as a child, we gained a neighbor and friend in Evan when we bought our land in 2015. Evan was beside us almost every day as we built our house in 2016 and 2017, and we fell in love with his two daughters, Heron and Hayden who are often running around their farm wearing party dresses and bare feet.
It was right in the middle of our house project when Evan showed up to the job site with the biggest smile on his face and a story to tell. He was at a community contradance in Montpelier the night before when he had spied Emily for the first time- they noticed each other right as he walked into the room, and had shared the first dance, and many more together. They had plans to get together again, and as the days progressed, we pestered him for details which he gladly shared. When we finally met Emily for the first time, we knew Evan had met his person, and we had a new friend. Last August, Emily moved to the farm, and ever since, we’ve shared meals at each others houses, had jam sessions and dance parties, and gotten to celebrate and help through every stage of the wedding planning.
Emily and Evan’s wedding was the result of just about every single one of their guests coming together to collaborate. From the spring, their families would spend weekends at the top of their hill, planting grass and flowers, building the stage and the outhouses, and raising the centerpiece of the wedding- a timber framed structure where Emily and Evan would say their vows. Their neighbors pitched in to drive a shuttle of people up to the top of the hill on the wedding day and make the cake, harvest flowers, and lend supplies. Guests flooded the hill with arms full of dishes to serve for dinner, and others brought instruments to play during cocktail hour and the ceremony.
We always feel honored to get to know our couples and be apart of their wedding days. This past weekend, we felt especially grateful to get to be such a big part of Emily and Evan’s life and live a short walking distance from our dear friends.
