The wedding and reception

The big day finally arrived! Naomi and David's wedding, the reason I came at this time of the year rather than later in the summer. Naomi graduated from Martin Luther College earlier this month, and now her wedding day!

I borrowed this from someone else's photos. The man in the blue shirt served as vicar at my church in FL when we first moved to FL, and his brother served as vicar here at FG before I moved to FL. They are long-time friends of the family and have kids who went to MLC with Naomi and David. 

Here is the school gym all dressed out for the wedding. The bleachers are lined with jars with candles in them and some tulle to make them look pretty. Later Naomi's uncles came around and lighted all the candles which was quite a task!  Linda, Tommy, and I were seated at the 2nd table in, along the bleachers.

I sneaked a picture of Ann, one of the kitchen ladies, who so graciously, with others, served the wedding meal. Her words, "It's the least we could do for this family who has done so much for us." Love it! A group of people made most of the food, and the family did as well. By the way, Ann is no longer a member of this congregation but came back in order to serve her friends in this fashion.

The mother of the bride, Julia, and her mom, Jean, waiting for the meal to be served. Julia was radiant, and I can't say I blame her!  I know she is filled with joy over this for her daughter and dear son-in-law. 

Naomi and David are about to drink a toast after her uncle lead the room in prayer. He is a pastor, serving the Lord in CA. 

My blurry plate of food complete with a natural casing hot dog, dinner roll, olives, pickles, noodles with beef tips, and a slice of ham. I ate the hot dog first, of course!

Naomi's aunt Janice is about to start carving away on the wedding cakes. Naomi's nieces and nephews and other younger ones helped to distribute the cake to the guests. All the flowers were donated from people's gardens and presented in embellished jars. I was tempted to take the arrangement from my table when I left to give to Lynn, because she just loves lilacs. But I resisted!