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//COUPLE ENJOYS INTIMATE WEDDING ON THE MARSH// STORY BY BECCA EDWARDS | PHOTOS BY ELLE MICHELE PHOTOGRAPHY
Laura and Jayson Johnson know quite a lot about working through a challenging situation. Laura is an RN at Beaufort Memorial Hospital. Jayson is a drill instructor at Parris Island who will soon transfer to San Diego’s Camp Pendleton to serve as a combat engineer. The two met and fell in love in March 2020 — right when the rest of the world was thrown into an unprecedented state of isolation and anxiety due to the global pandemic. “My emergency room best friend’s husband works with Jayson, and they bring in recruits a lot because there’s no hospital on base. I remember thinking he was cute, but I never wanted to date anyone in the military,” Laura said. “I came in late one night, saw her but did not want to say anything. But she kept popping up on my social media, so I decided to ask my friend about her, and my friend told me she was cool. I messaged
Laura and asked her if she wanted to go on a date. Even though COVID was running around, we picked up Taco Bell and went to the drive-in movie,” Jayson said, lightly laughing. By December, they were engaged. “Oh, this is a good engagement story,” Jayson said. “It’s hard to pop the question when you’ve already discussed it, but one day my dad was in Beaufort on a business trip, and we were sitting on the couch. He was like, ‘When are you going to do it?’ And I said, ‘You’re right, I need to make a plan.’ So, I called the escape room Every Second Counts on Lady’s Island. We planted clues so that when she solved the puzzle it read, ‘Will you marry me?’ ” Their engagement 10 months after meeting may seem quick, but at the heart of their engagement story is the theme of steadfastness and Laura and Jayson’s resolve to work through whatever life throws their way.
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Last July, Jayson learned he was going to be transferred to San Diego. “I didn’t want to do the coast-to-coast longdistance thing, especially because of COVID. And you can’t develop a meaningful relationship without sharing some intimate time together,” he said. “I thought, ‘I love Laura. I know this might be a little more shotgun than people might like but let’s not let our jobs or money get in the way of us being together.’ ” On Jan. 8, 2021, in front of 18 of their closest friends and family members, Laura and Jayson married on a small piece of public land overlooking the Beaufort River. Right before the ceremony it began to rain. Unperturbed, Jayson waited for Laura under an umbrella at the altar as Laura’s father escorted her through the hilly and wet terrain; her feet nearly frozen but still leading her to Jayson. In her vows, Laura read, “No one I’ve ever met, no address I’ve ever had, and no state line I’ve ever crossed has ever felt more like home to me than you.” In his vows, Jayson read, “Whenever I was experiencing negative things, being around her washed away all of it and gave me a sense of calm. She’s my light at the end of the tunnel.” Both said there is something quite special about being married by the water. Jayson added, “My favorite memory of our wedding is after the ceremony. Laura and I sat on a bench that looked out over the river. I will always remember us sitting in our Sunday best after making a commitment to not just be married but to constantly be working on something. As we sat there, the rain subsided, and the sunlight came out.”
VENDORS: OFFICIANT: Rev. Dr. Dan A. Hogan PHOTOGRAPHER: Elle Michele Photography VIDEOGRAPHER: LaPoint Media FLORIST: Berkeley Flowers & Gifts CATERER: Q on Bay HAIR: Emily Cuppia
RECENTLY OR SOON TO BE To have your engagement or wedding announcement included in next month’s Monthly, register online by June 15.
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//MOSS CREEK COUPLE REVELS IN UNEXPECTED ROMANCE//
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STORY BY VICKIE MCINTYRE | PHOTOS BY THOMAS LOVE OF TR MEDIA WORLD
“It’s true what they say,” marvels Lea Allen. “When you least expect it, it happens.” Her husband, Tommy Smith, nods in agreement. “It’s a good time of our lives,” he adds, “The kids are grown, we’ve been through marriage before, and we’re more spontaneous.” Nestled in their Moss Creek home, both are reminiscing about their whirlwind courtship and recent wedding. Seventeen months ago, neither Smith, a widower and premier builder in the area, nor Allen, divorced for over a decade and a successful real estate agent, had anticipated getting married again — especially to each other. For 30 years their professional paths often crossed. Two winters ago, when Lea learned that Tommy’s wife had passed after a long battle with cancer, she reached out with condolences and support. Long conversations ensued. As did hours-long walks. Then the unexpected — the fuse of romance sparked, just as the country entered lockdown. Their “safe place” became Tommy’s waterfront home. “It caused us to spend a lot of quality time together, which could have gone either way,” laughs Lea. Without normal distractions, they drew closer. Tennis, bike riding, and boating filled their days in between working remotely. “That’s when I dubbed this house, the Peninsula Resort,” she teases.
“I hate what COVID did to the world,” adds Tommy, “but we had an unbelievable experience through it.” After a surprise proposal last fall when Tommy presented Lea with a stunning, circular diamond ring, the couple began planning for a spring wedding. COVID restrictions limited venue choices, but the Grand Ocean Terrace at the Westin Hilton Head Island Resort offered everything the couple needed to pull off a large, yet safe, celebration. It also complemented Lea’s vision for an ocean theme. Tommy, an amateur astronomer, set the time (6 p.m.-10 p.m.) and date (4/24) according to the arrival of high tide and the backdrop of a full moon. Because the venue didn’t require masks, Lea sent invitations out early so guests could make their own decisions about getting vaccinated prior to the event. With intention, the couple designed an event celebrating their gratitude at finding love again. There would be no cake, no tossing of the bouquet, and no sit-down dinner. No bridesmaids, no gifts. But there would be lots of champagne, live music, and multiple bouquets of white and blue hydrangeas dotted with red roses. Numerous food stations offered everything from lobster mac and cheese to pork belly pineapple skewers, grilled salmon, and a mashed potato martini bar. Tommy insisted on stringing festive lights in the ballroom, and Lea chose an elegant blue formal dress instead of traditional white.
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“No stress,” was the couple’s mantra, though Lea admits that having her dress arrive two days before the wedding wasn’t ideal. But stepping into the ballroom to join Tommy, she recalls only “tremendous happiness and energy.” As guests, champaign flutes in-hand, formed a semicircle around the couple, the Reverend Greg Kronz of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church began the ceremony with the ocean in full view, thanks to a wall of sliding-glass doors. “Because we had done marriage counseling, it gave Greg a lot of little jewels to add to the ceremony,” says Lea. “We took it very, very seriously.” Per Tommy’s request, the band learned and played Joy of My Life by Chris Stapleton for the couple’s first dance. Then everything kicked into high gear. “I think people were ready to celebrate,” says Lea, noting that without any stipulations about attire, nearly all of the more than 100 guests wore colorful, dressy outfits. Sore feet were the norm by evening’s end because once the dancing started, no one sat still. “I pulled a J. Lo and eventually switched to a red dress and flip flops,” exclaims Lea. Despite the rain, no one’s spirits were dampened. The mix of guests — their children, grandchildren, co-workers, sorority sisters, and even Lea’s 89-year-old father — left the party smiling. As did the bride and groom. At last glance, they still are.
//AGAIN
& ALWAYS//
VENDORS: PHOTOGRAPHER/ VIDEOGRAPHER: Thomas Love of TR Media World // WEDDING VENUE & CATERING: The Westin Hilton Head Island Resort & Spa OFFICIANT: Reverend Greg Kronz of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church // BAND: Target the Band featuring The Headliner Horns // FLOWERS: Fresh Market HAIR: Jennifer Nettles at The Hair Gallery
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RING: Heritage Fine Jewelry
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BY EDWARD THOMAS
MAKE THE BIG DAY A LITTLE EXTRA SPECIAL!
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TYPICALLY, THE GROOM’S CAKE IS MORE OF A SOUTHERN TRADITION AND PRESENTED AS A GIFT TO THE GROOM FROM THE BRIDE.
Are groom’s cakes a thing of the past? Local cake maker Courtney Glover doesn’t think so. Glover, of Brown Sugar Custom Cakes, which serves Beaufort and Bluffton, still finds them regularly requested. She says groom’s cakes are very appealing to couples, especially if the wedding budget is substantial enough to include special little extras that make an entire wedding weekend more memorable. Hilton Head Island’s Signe Gardo, of Signe’s Heaven Bound Bakery, acknowledges she has created well over 800 wedding cakes and groom’s cakes during her 45 years of cake making. She says groom’s cakes are requested “in about 20 percent of the weddings” she serves. That percentage has remained steady since the 1980s. Gardo said she has made groom’s cakes in the shape of everything from baseball caps and football jerseys to college logos and beer cans. Thanks to the 1989 movie “Steel Magnolias,” a red velvet cake shaped like an armadillo was quite popular for a few years. One of Gardo’s more complicated cakes was made for a U.S. Marine aviator from the Marine Corps Airs Station in Beaufort. It was a replica of an FA18-E Super Hornet which he flew on missions. “For creating cakes like that aircraft,” Gardo said, “you can only work with sugar paste fondant, and you must be architecturally sound so that the wings will hold up on their own. I was really sweating that it wouldn’t collapse when we were delivering it in our cargo van to the wedding.” Kelsey Allison, who has been a wedding planner in Bluffton for seven years, says she routinely recommends a groom’s cake because she thinks they are so special. “Typically, the groom’s cake is more of a Southern tradition and presented as a gift to the groom from the bride,” said Allison. “It is meant to reflect her knowledge of him and her support of his passions. If they are displayed with the wedding cake they are smaller, but at the rehearsal dinner they are often large sheet cakes.” Glover agrees that groom’s cakes add a special touch, especially if they are the main attraction at the rehearsal dinner. “Over the past couple of years, I’ve had a lot of requests for fishing and hunting theme cakes,” she said, “like fish in a cooler or a sugar paste shotgun with buckshot on the cake.” Left: A cooler packed with a fish cake by Brown Sugar Custom Cakes. Above: Signe’s Heaven Bound Bakery made this trio of Groom’s cakes.
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A GROOM’S CAKE IS A RICHER FLAVORED CAKE COMPARED TO A BRIDE’S CAKE.
Top: Signe Gardo of Signe’s Heaven Bound Bakery at work. Above: A soccer inspired groom’s cake by Signe’s Heaven Bound Bakery. Right: Courtney Glover of Brown Sugar Custom Cakes.
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BRITISH ORIGINS Origins of the groom’s cake date to the 1600s but became popularized in the Victorian Era. They typically were a richer flavored cake compared to the bride’s cake, often including chocolate or alcohol. In fact, heavily liquored, rum-based fruit cake is still said to be the staple groom’s cake among British royalty weddings. Gardo said another favorite old Southern tradition was for single ladies to take home a slice of the groom’s cake, wrap it, and place it under their pillow in hopes of having a dream about their own future groom. Prominent area wedding planner Beth Baldwin of Beth Baldwin Weddings thinks groom’s cakes may be outdated (“from what I have seen, groom’s cakes are going the way of the overhead garter and bouquet toss,” she said), but Gardo believes they are here to stay. “With such lovely traditions, I expect groom’s cakes will be around as long as there are brides and grooms,” she said. “After all, why limit ourselves to just one cake when we can have two?”
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