TAKE A VOW
From this day forward… A LOVING COUPLE WILL LOVE RECALLING THEIR NEW YORK NUPTIALS, WHEN RAIN DIDN’T DARE INTERFERE.
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LEE MICHAELS
By Donna Rolando Wedding Planning by Katie Berger, Sara Kate Events Photography by Amy Rizzuto Photography
With family in Ireland, a Connecticut couple considered getting married “across the pond”—the big one, that is—but their thoughts kept returning to Central Park, a tranquil setting they had already immortalized with their engagement. “It’s always had a good place in our heart,” says Natasha (Treacy) Walton. “It’s quintessential New York.” When planning their wedding, she and husband John chose to build on those good vibes and the city that sparked their love with a reception at The Loeb Boathouse Central Park. Natasha recalls that there were flash-flood warnings on their May 5 wedding date, but when they arrived at the iconic Church of St. Ignatius Loyola and Natasha stepped out of the trolley, the skies cleared. “It didn’t start raining again until later that night,” she says. “We got very lucky—or blessed.” The landmark church with its 5,000-pipe organ proved a “spectacular” setting in which to tie the knot after five-plus years of dating. (The couple both worked in finance, lived in the same New York City apartment building and met through friends.) The rainfall earlier in the day made their photo shoot in Central Park almost magical. “We had the park entirely to ourselves,” Natasha recalls. Where rain might have brought gloom, the pink-and-gray palette she chose for the bridal party hinted happily of spring, and the couple made their grand entrance by gondola as guests gazed from the balcony. As the night progressed, guests were introduced to the couple’s signature cocktails: his, the bourbon-based Woozy Walton; hers, the Muddled McGee, a sparkling strawberry concoction. The couple’s first dance took courage for the groom, as their song “I Don’t Dance” by Lee Brice suggests. But John was rewarded, in a way, with butter-cream cookie-dough filling—he loves cookie dough—for the three-tier cake by LuLu’s Bakery. A prompt “mini-moon” in Miami was followed one year later with a trip to South Africa and Mozambique. Now the couple has settled in Connecticut with fond memories of the city that kindled their flame.
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3/16/22 9:52 AM
