Lady Mary Appleton Weston

The daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Fuller Weston, Jr., Lady Mary Appleton, has been chosen as the 135th Leading Lady for the Order of Dragons Annual Ball, which will take place on February 3rd of this year. Serving as Leading Lady for The Order of Dragons is an honor Mary Appleton is excited to fulfill as her father has been a member of the organization for quite some time, serving as the Design Committee Chariman for the 125th Anniversary Ball and later President of the organization.

Mary Appleton first learned of her selection to serve as Leading Lady back in August of last year. Her entire family went to one of Mary Appleton’s favorite restaurants, NOJA, to celebrate her return from working in Hawaii for the summer. “My Mom and Dad had a present for me, a welcome home present so I thought. When I opened it, it was a Dragon Ornament my Dad had received for being the Design Committee Chair of the 125th Ball. It took me a second or two to realize the significance, but once I did I was ecstatic!” For her ball’s wardrobe, Mary Appleton worked closely with Celeste Thomas who styled her in a custom white silk Mikado gown by John Paul Ataker, which she purchased from Debra’s. She will be wearing custom jewelry from Knot Just Beads designed by her family friend, Eileen Schwarz, as well as some pieces from her mother’s personal jewelry collection. Perhaps most special is a piece from her great grandmother, an engraved Order of Dragons bracelet she received from her husband in 1962.

Mary Appleton is the oldest of three, with two younger brothers, Fuller and Harrigan. She has so many memories growing up with them, most especially from Mardi Gras throughout the years. “My favorite memory of Mardi Gras was when I was 9 years old and the MOMs parade rode on my birthday,” she recalls. “My mom threw me a huge stuffed animal!” Mary Appleton is currently a senior at the

University of Kentucky, majoring in Psychology. She has been a Dean’s List student for all four years, a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority, and loves playing on several college intramural sports teams. She will graduate in May of this year and plans to attend law school.

“My Mom and Dad had a present for me, a welcome home present so I thought. When I opened it, it was a Dragon Ornament my Dad had received for being the Design Committee Chair of the 125th Ball.”

-Lady Mary Appleton Weston