Emily Anne Beauchaine & Jon Garrett Waggoner, Jr.

March 25, 2023 – Birmingham

Rett and Emily Anne met during spring of their freshman year at Auburn University. They were both part of a freshman service organization and quickly became friends. Throughout their time at Auburn, they continued to serve the university, traveling across the Southeast to football games and working various events together representing the War Eagle Girls and Plainsmen, with Rett going on to serve as SGA president. Samford Hall, Auburn’s most treasured building on campus that houses the clocktower that rings Auburn’s fight song every day, became a place where Emily Anne and Rett shared some of their most beloved moments. Samford Hall is where Rett asked Emily Anne to be his girlfriend when they started dating. Two years later, on April 1, 2022, Rett scheduled a surprise clock tower tour at Samford Hall. At 5 o’clock in the evening, overlooking the university where they shared years of memories and monumental moments, Rett proposed to Emily Anne with their family watching from Samford Hall’s lawn.

Favorite Details

“Little details tell a big story. Many of the decisions and design elements for the wedding day were chosen for their sentiment and meaning. The cake was topped with sugar flowers that topped the wedding cake of my parents more than thirty years ago. My great-grandmother’s crochet lace tablecloth that has been used in three generations of weddings was overlayed on the cake and groom’s dessert tables. The vows were spoken at the alter of the church where I grew up in daycare. Beloved photos from our grandparents’ and parents’ weddings were displayed at the reception. The veil was a surprise made from lace from my mother’s, aunt’s, and sister’s wedding dresses; embroidered with the names of each woman who has worn the lace. A handkerchief from Rett’s late grandmother wrapped the bouquet, adorned by a locket of the my late grandmother. Last but not least is a handkerchief with so much meaning; simple at first glance, confusing at second glance when reading the embroidered letters, “LJPPKGFGSC.” It is so simple, but abounding in meaning when hearing my mother tearfully explain that she would write these letters on the napkin she packed in my lunchbox for school every day so that if anyone asked, “What do these letters mean?” I could explain they were the fruits of the spirit and share the gospel. Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, Self Control. LJPPKGFGSC. Each detail honored loved ones, family, and glorified the Lord.” – Emily Anne