Real Weddings | Christy And Roy | By Bloomington Illinois Wedding Photographer Mark Romine

Real Wedding Description

Roy and I were married on December 20, 2008 on the campus of Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, Illinois. The setting was special to us, as we are both graduates of the university. What made it even more special was that it was one of our first times being on campus together! Even though we graduated in the same small class of roughly 500 students, we didn’t meet until two years after graduation. We met on a plane on the way to Key West, realized our “small world” connection, and I guess you could say the rest is history! The wedding was a wonderful celebration, as many of our college friends returned to campus to join in the festivities.

What I loved most about our wedding were all the small, personal touches. I loved that Roy’s Uncle John, a Lutheran pastor, was our officiant. Now he has made BOTH of us officially part of the Heins family, because he also performed Roy’s adoption ceremony when Roy’s parents adopted him as a baby! His wife, Roy’s aunt, baked the communion bread for our ceremony. Another personal touch was that my mom used material from her own wedding gown and her mother’s wedding gown to make the flower girl’s basket and the ring bearer’s pillow. These keepsakes will be treasured for years to come. Being a first grade teacher, I also recruited my students’ help to add a special little touch to our programs. We had ten different covers printed, each hand-drawn by one of my first graders. Our friends and family loved them! Yet another special part of the ceremony was when my mom and my sister performed a beautiful duet. My mom accompanied my sister on the piano while my sister filled the chapel with her gorgeous voice. Finally, we chose to perform a sand ceremony in lieu of lighting a unity candle. The sand that we used was authentic sand from Key West because that was where we met!

The reception was full of special details as well. Our guests received Christmas tree ornaments as favors because when Roy proposed to me, he hid the ring inside an ornament on the Christmas tree. During the father/daughter dance, a slide show played in the background, showing photos of my dad and me from the time I was a baby until the present. Roy even surprised me when it came time for the garter toss when he pulled all sorts of funny toys and props out from under my dress!

I felt that absolutely everything ran smoothly on our wedding day. Our flowers were beautiful, the cake was delicious, and the D.J. kept the party going all night long. Evelyn Chapel was a lovely setting for our ceremony, and the Parke Hotel was an absolutely perfect venue for entertaining our friends and family. And, of course, we are thrilled with the gorgeous photography that captured our whole day.