THE MAHARREYS

assandra and Matt Maharrey met in a laundromat C parking lot. To be exact, it was a laundromat in Fulton, Mississippi, where their friends from Itawamba Community College gathered to play guitar. On the night the couple met, their friends mysteriously disappeared.

“We still don't know if they abandoned us on purpose,” Matt said.

The duo has come a long way since the 2013 encounter. They traded laundromat lots for Alaskan glaciers (one of which Matt proposed on), and are known by his father as “the adventurers.” A love for architecture and history captivates them both.

For that reason, New Orleans had always seemed a fitting place for their vows. Not to mention, their first trip together was to the city. Upon their March 2021 engagement, though, they reconsidered the idea. Protecting friends and family from pandemic travel was a priority.

They decided upon All Saints’ Episcopal Church in Tupelo, a space that fosters their newly-kindled faith. The task, then, was to bring New Orleans to Mississippi. The simplest way to accomplish that was through food and decor: they served shrimp poboys and red beans and rice; Mardis Gras beads were placed throughout the reception hall; French Quarter-style lamp posts served as centerpieces for each table.

The showstopper, though, would be a Second Line.

Opening page: Cassandra and Matt Maharrey on their wedding day. This page, clockwise from top left: Thin, pink ribbons hide a suprise charm buried within Cassandra's cake. She invited women in attendance to pull the ribbons, releasing a small charm which determined their fortune. This practice, known as cake pulling, is widely associated with New Orleans; the couple decorated tabletops with lamposts, reminscent of ones found in the French Quarter; the couple decorated their parasols for their second line tradition.

A Second Line is a New Orleans tradition with ties to West Africa. In any context, whether funerals or weddings, Second Lines are joyful celebrations of life. The First Line is composed of the parade leader or grand marshal, while the Second Line is composed of those parading behind. Participants wave handkerchiefs and carry parasols – two accessories that distinguish this style of parade from others.

As a gift to the couple, Matt’s father rounded up a jazz band – a crew of young musicians from the area – to lead a First Line up and down Jefferson street, ending at the church’s reception hall.

“Most people thought, ‘What in the world? Why are we parading?’” Cassandra said. “But I love the tradition. It’s a celebration.”

When they returned to the parish hall, Cassandra asked for female volunteers. Fifteen women circled around her cake and were asked to pull a small, pink ribbon from the bottom of it – another New Orleans style practice called cake pulling. At the end of the ribbon was a small charm, which they would exchange for a fortune from Cassandra.

The couple says they wouldn’t change a thing about their wedding day, apart from making it longer. A contrast from their quiet first encounter, their wedding was a call to lean into joie de vivre.

“I've never seen some of our older relatives laugh and smile so much in my life,” Cassandra said. M

This page, top to bottom: Guests wave handkerchiefs during the Second Line tradition; Matt and Cassandra carry parasols as they parade from their ceremony to their reception; a jazz band provides music during the parade.

Opening page: Henry Garrett. This page: Kathy and Henry Garrett pose for a portrait. Next page, top to bottom: Dozer the Bulldog, courtesy of Whitney Daniels Photography; A close-up of Henry; Moses the Corso Cane, courtesy of Mary Kate Steele Photography.

hen Kathey Garrett’s daughter and W son-in-law, Mary Sydney and Michael Reist, were planning their wedding, they knew they wanted their dog, Archie, to be part of their big day in every way.

What they didn’t count on was rain.

“At the event, Archie went from groomsmen, to fathers to mothers – he was a wet mess," Garrett said. "The groom's father almost missed the mother-son dance at the reception because he was taking Archie away from the crowd."

That's when Garrett realized they really could have used someone to help guide and take care of the beloved pet during the May 2019 celebration.

“That’s where the concept started,” she said. "I started doing some research. There were companies out there that took care of pets during weddings, but none in Mississippi."

Garrett had fostered pets before in her home, so getting re-certified in pet CPR was easy. Next she took some business and marketing classes at Ole Miss to freshen those skills.

And in August 2020, Wagnolia Bells was born.

The business is named for the Garretts' beagle, Magnolia Belle, who was 17 when she died a couple of years ago. Garrett's younger daughter, Shurden, suggested changing Magnolia to Wagnolia and dropping the e from Belle and adding an s, to echo the idea of wedding bells. "I decided I didn't want to be a typical pet sitter," Garrett said. "I wanted to give brides peace of mind that their pets were taken care on their wedding day or wedding weekend. Our focused mission is to give the bridal couple the knowledge that their pets are wellcared for and loved while they're celebrating."

Garrett, or one of her crew, chaperoned dogs at six weddings in the first year, then did another 20 in 2021. So far, she's got 16 weddings lined up for 2022. "I need the bride, or groom, to contact me ASAP," Garrett said. "We're already turning people away. This has gotten bigger than I thought it would, but I knew there was a need because I lived it."

Garrett said the first thing she does when she meets with the bridal couple and their pet is determine the behavior of the dog, or dogs.

"How do they react in a crowd or around people?" Garrett said. "How do they react around kids, especially, and men? Are they jumpers? Are they barkers? Do they pull on a leash? Are they comfortable riding in a car?"

Sometimes, a bride doesn't know how involved she wants her pet to be in the wedding. Maybe it's just there for photos; maybe it's there to walk down the aisle. Garrett helps with those decisions. "I'm basically the event planner for the pet," Garrett said. "We pick the pet up, transport it safely to and from the venue, and coordinate with the event planner and photographer so I know when and where to be."

Garrett said if a dog is calm enough, it can walk down the aisle and stay with the couple during the ceremony, or be taken aside. "Some dogs stand where guests enter and greet the guests, then we take the dog away to a quiet area and meet up for photos afterward," said. "And we're not just limited to dogs. We haven't had a cat yet, but I've been waiting for one. But the same rules apply – the pet has to be on a leash."

Another mission of Wagnolia Bells is to help other pets. Ten percent of each custom package is donated to an animal shelter or rescue of the couple's choice.

Garrett and her chaperones – she has six and is looking for 10 more – are all pet CPR certified. They have done weddings in Oxford, Hernando, Memphis, Jackson, Nashville, Birmingham – and places in between.

They've handled small dogs, like Pomeranians, and big dogs, like Great Danes. The ratio is usually one chaperone per pet, although a chaperone might handle two small pets at once. "No one has been bitten yet, but another chaperone and I were pulled down into chairs once by a dog," Garrett said. "But it was a funny pull-down. We laugh about it now."

Garrett, who was a teacher for many years and also worked in retail, and her husband, Jim, moved from Charlottesville, Virginia, to Oxford in 2016 for his job.

This is now their home. "I love what I do," Garrett said. "If you love what you do, you do it more and more. I get to spend time planning, and I get to work with pets. It's a dream come true." M

TheSimmons House

by ALLIE ALLSUP photos by LINDSAY PACE

or the past six years, Jerri Anne and Gil Davis have re-F stored The Simmons House, a historic Greek Revival home in Water Valley, and the venue’s surrounding properties .

The goal? To support Water Valley’s growth.

The house, originally built by Dr. William Simmons in 1871, needed a great deal of care to bring it back to its former glory. This is part of the reason why it’s taken the Davises so long to finish its restoration.

During the first year of the repair, people would often stop to talk to those working. Past owners -- and even strangers -- would come with all sorts of stories about the house and those who used to live there. Because of this, the Davises wanted to create a space that Water Valley could be proud of: A place to bring people in, have rooms for them to gather, and enjoy good company.

Opening page: The front entrance to The Simmons House. This spread, clockwise from top left: the ladies' parlor features a couch that is a family heirloom of Jerri's. It arrived to Water Valley by train nearly a century ago; Jerri Anne and her pup, who accompanies her throughout the day; the sun room; a silver tea set in the dining room; a tablescape in the dining room; vintage magazines serve as decoration.

“It needed people in it, people to admire it and to love it,” Jeri Anne said. “For that reason, we wanted to preserve everything about it.”

Soon enough, they found a patient, committed team dedicated to working with them day in and day out.

“They were such team players with every detail on the project,” Jeri Anne said. “Without them, we never would have gotten as far as we have.”

In the past five years, the Davis’s main focus has been getting the house in the shape and condition they knew it was worthy of. It wasn’t until 2021 that they started to focus on the venue itself, officially opening in June.

“Work like this is never really complete,” Davis said. “But it’s really great to see a piece of our history here in Water Valley come back to life.”

This spread, clockwise from top left: A sitting area in an upstairs bedroom; lifelike busts add a Victorian element to Jerri's antique design; sunlight warms an upstairs bedroom; a cherry-colored vanity reflects a second floor suite.

"There's a story in every room."

A multipurpose venue, The Simmons House offers a beautiful backdrop for weddings, family events, rehearsal dinners and get-togethers. Four properties split the venue: The Simmons House, The Lee House, The Williams House, and The Charlotte’s Guest House. These houses offer overnight lodgings, and between them, can comfortably accommodate twenty-five guests.

The Simmons House also has robust gardens surrounding the venue that took nearly two years to complete.

Restoring as much as they could within and outside of the house, the Davises updated this unique venue with crystal chandeliers, marbled bathrooms, glass showers and unlacquered brass knobs. The couple even kept some of the original furniture and woodwork.

“There’s a story in every room,” Jerri Ann said. “We’ve done the work, now we’re ready to share it.” M

This spread, clockwise from top left: A clawfoot tub features unlacquered brass, an intentional design choice. Jerri Anne wants the decor to age as the house does; The Simmons House is full of natural light. It's easy to find reflections of it throughout the home; decor fills a fireplace in an upstairs suite.