THE WEDDING OF LIZA & JUSTIN

August 26, 2017

Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts

By Carol K. Dumas

When she was a young girl, Liza Reynolds had dreamed about getting married at The Allen Farm, a bucolic sheep farm located in the Martha’s Vineyard village of Chilmark. With rolling green hills, stone walls and stunning ocean views, the farm was indeed a fairytale venue, but it also carried a special significance to her family over the years.

“My father, a real estate lawyer on the island, had helped to maintain Allen family ownership over the years, protecting the land from development and keeping its natural beauty,” explains Liza, who was born and raised on the Vineyard.

On the day of her marriage to Justin Merolla, the bride and her dad took a “very long walk” on a sunny, blue-sky late summer’s day through a field to the outdoor ceremony overlooking the ocean. As they made their way down the aisle toward the wedding arbor, bagpipes played “Highland Cathedral.”

“Having grown up on Magnolia Avenue as a family, we got two magnolia bushes and put one on each side of the arbor, so we had [my parents] Susan and Joe Merolla with us on our special day,” said Justin, who also carried a pocket square Liza and his sister made from his mother’s wedding dress, and wore his father’s favorite watch.

Vineyard-inspired details were many: Chilmark Chocolates, oyster shell salt-andpepper shakers, a menu created from locally sourced ingredients and, in lieu of favors, donations to friends’ and families’ favorite island nonprofits.

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