BLACK MOUNTAIN NEWS • WWW.BLACKMOUNTAINNEWS.COM THURSDAY, FEBRUARY13, 2014 • PAGE B1

Valley Weddings B

M organ Hargrove grew up inBlackMountain, the daughter ofHayward “Sonny” and Nancy

Hargrove. She has fondmemories of thepeople and the beautiful mountains thatsurround her hometown.

While attending Louisiana State Uni-versity Law School, she met her futurehusband, Robert Johnson, a Baton

Rouge, La., native.“We decided that BlackMountain

was the best place to bemarried,” Mor-gan said. “The guests were blown awayby the beauty of the area, just as Robertwas during his first visit.”

Theymarried onMay 25, 2013, inGaither Chapel inMontreat. The wed-ding was the result of planning over ayear-and-a-half time span while shefinished law school and passed the Loui-siana Bar Exam.

Morgan chose to use as many localvendors for her wedding as possible.Her mother, and sister, Hope HargroveBurk, helped her make her weddingdesires come true.

“I was so impressed with the qualityof services of the BlackMountain areaentrepreneurs,” Morgan said. “I usedRed Radish Catering, TheMerryWineMarket, Hey Hey Cupcake, Urban FarmGirl, andWestsound Band out of Ashe-ville. All of our out-of-town guests

stayed in BlackMountain. They wereimpressed with theMonte Vista Hoteland a handful of bed and breakfasts thatwe recommended, including Inn Aroundthe Corner, Red Rocker Inn, and ArborHouse.”

“We enjoyed the time spent withfamily and loved ones during the plan-ning of the wedding,” Nancy said. “Theanticipation was probably the most fun

Continuing aLEGACY OF LOVE

Morgan and Robert Johnson at their reception walking through a path of wellwishers holding sparklers. PHOTO PROVIDED BY GRAHAM TERHUNE, PHOTOGRAPHER

See LOVE, Page B2

Hargrove andJohnson keep

it local

By Barbara HootmanStaff Writer

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BLACK MOUNTAIN NEWS • WWW.BLACKMOUNTAINNEWS.COMPAGE B2 • THURSDAY, FEBRUARY13, 2014

part of the whole process. Susan Leive,a neighbor, helpedme with the recep-tion, and really took a lot of the work outof it for me. This wedding was a teameffort, and it made for such a good expe-rience. Gaither Chapel was a wonderfulexperience.”

Since many of the guests attendingthe wedding were coming from outsideNorth Carolina, Morgan wanted to high-light a few favorite things about NorthCarolina.

“I emphasized Cheerwine, mountainbarbeque, and sourwood honey, whichwas just a name for some of them,” shesaid.

Family traditions played a big role inMorgan’s planning of her wedding.

“We wanted to focus on the impor-tance of family in our lives and the lega-cy of love that has been passed down inboth of our families,” she said. “At ourreception we framed pictures of bothsets of parents on their wedding dayand all four sets of grandparents asyoung couples and placed them on theguest book table. We usedmy great-grandmother’s handmade quilts to deco-rate various areas of the reception andthe get-away car. Robert’s grandmother,Mary Edna Rose, of Holcomb, Miss.,canned all of the homemade jelly that

we gave as wedding favors. We includedhymns that had a special significance tous and our families, including ‘HowGreat Thou Art,’ ‘Be ThouMy Vision,’and ‘Amazing Grace.’”

Morgan’s wedding dress was simple,elegant, and traditionally significant.

“I wore a simple A-line dress with asweetheart neckline, satin belt, laceoverlay and sheer top,” she said. “Ifound the dress in Brookhaven, Miss.,with myMom, Aunt Anita Johnson, andLacey JohnsonMiller, cousin, with me. Isewed a piece of chiffon frommymoth-er’s wedding dress into the bottom ofmy dress, with both mine andmymoth-er’s monograms sewn onto it, along withour wedding dates. The piece of mymother’s dress sewn into my dress ismy favorite feature.

“I also wore a cathedral-length lace

veil which was originally worn bymyAunt Anita in the 1970s.”

“The rehearsal dinner was hosted attheMonte Vista Hotel. It worked outwell because the majority of out-of-townguests stayed there. We had a lovelycocktail hour on the patio and then a sitdown dinner in the large Blue RidgeDining Room, where Sunburst Farmsmountain trout was served as the mainentree.”

Themorning before the wedding, thebridesmaids andMorgan enjoyed arelaxing yoga session at BlackMountainYoga, and then enjoyed the traditionalbridesmaids’ lunch at the Veranda Cafe.

Hargrove’s reception was outdoors atWolf Creek Cove, a large open piece ofland tucked away near Blue Ridge As-sembly.

A large tent housed the dance floorand tables. A large gazebo hosted thebar. Red Radish catered the receptionfood. Robert andMorgan have deepsouthern roots and themenu reflectedthat. Deviled eggs were one of the horsd’oeuvres. North Carolina barbeque wasthemain dish, with traditional sides.Wine selections were provided by TheMerryWineMarket and beer was fromPisgah Brewing Company. Seasonalsummer ale wasMorgan’s selection.

“We served signature ‘his’ and ‘hers’mixed cocktails, which were ‘SouthernSweet Tea’ (Firefly vodka and lemon-ade) and ‘Gentleman Jack,’ which wasJack Daniels and Coca-Cola.”

Morgan did not have a traditional

cake. She chose various flavors of cup-cakes from hey hey cupcake. Robert’sgroom cake was a replica of the originalGameboy that came out in the early1990s, reflecting his love of videogames.

Because the couple had an outdoorreception, they had a cornhole set madejust for the occasion. One side waspainted with North Carolina scenesalong with the logo for UNC-Chapel Hill- Morgan’s undergraduate almamater.The other side was painted with Louisi-ana scenes and the LSU logo - Robert’sundergraduate almamater.

In lieu of the popular photo booth,Morgan hung old frames from treelimbs that she found at the TobaccoBarn in Asheville. People were able topose in the frames.

TheWestsound Band was also pop-ular, playingmusic fromMotownthroughmodern hits.

“It was great to see our family andour parents’ friends all on the dancefloor together,” Morgan said.

Morgan says that after spending somuch time planning her wedding, sheappreciates her hometown evenmore.

“I’ve always felt fortunate to havegrown up in BlackMountain, however,after planning our wedding, I have adeeper sense of pride in our town. TheBlackMountain area has a pool of worldclass entrepreneurs in the service in-dustry. Also, it is hard to beat the beauti-ful Blue RidgeMountains as a back-drop.”

LOVEContinued from Page B1

The bride’s parents, Nancy and “Sonny”Hargrove, enjoy dancing at the reception.PHOTO PROVIDED BY GRAHAM TERHUNE,

A lisha Bucy and Paul Mayer metat the Bistro 1896 in Asheville,where they both worked at sep-

arate times. A mutual friend intro-duced them.

“It was love at second sight,” Alishasaid.

They started planning their wed-ding 10 months before the big day -September 21, 2013. They knew thatthey wanted a fall wedding with avintage theme.

“We thought the autumn equinoxwould make a great day to get mar-ried,” Alisha said. “Mymom suggestedthe Wild Hare in BlackMountain forour venue, and when we saw the placewe knew it was the right fit for us.”

Ashely, Alisha’s twin sister, marriedlast year, and proved to be a big help.

“She had the inside scoop on whatwas important and what wasn’t,” Al-isha said. “Mymom, Lenna, was ahuge help in planning the wedding.

She has a great eye for detail and ex-treme organizational skills that keptus on our toes when deadlines neededto be reached.”

Alisha used local vendors for mosteverything and worked for some 10months making special items for herwedding.

“She made her own boutonnieres,flower arrangements for the tables,her bridal bouquet, and those of herbridesmaids,” Lenna said.

“For the altar we used two recycledFrench doors frommy great-grand-mother’s house,” Alisha said. “Fash-ioned in between the doors were paperfan-wheels made from bridal maga-zines.

“About eight months out, I begansearching GoodWills for old glasscandy containers to use for terrariumsand found a bunch of them. We usedthese for our table centerpieces forour guests, as well as some of mygreat-grandmother Mimi’s old booksand china.”

The bride’s bouquet and those of

the bridesmaids were made out oforigami paper flowers.

“Alisha and Paul sat many nightsfolding paper for the bouquets monthsbefore the wedding,” Lenna said.

Alisha’s wedding gown was a Galinaorganza strapless with floral details.

“The only thing that could accom-pany such a beautiful dress was cow-girl boots,” Alisha said. “My jewelry,as well as my bridesmaids, was pur-chased from a local artist at the Sour-wood Festival this past summer.”

The rehearsal dinner was held atthe Madison Inn in Ridgecrest.

“It was spectacular,” Alisha said.“Their dining room is so warm andcomfortable - it feels like you are in arelative’s living room. Kelli, front ofthe house manager, was super friendlyand helpful in planning our menu, andthe food was delicious.”

The ceremony and reception tookplace at the Wild Hare in BlackMoun-tain.

“One of the highlights of the recep-tion at the Wild Hare was our candy

bar,” Alisha said. “There was over 30different kinds, from Swedish Phish toFun Dip and we had bags with ournames and the date for our guest totake home. They ravished it.”

Alisha even saved money on nothaving a formal program printed.

“I used a large chalk board andframed it,” she said. “Then in differentcolors of chalk I wrote our program.”

“One of the most humorous thingsthat happened was one of the lanternsthat were lit and released landed onCherry Street close to the TownPump,” Lenna said. “One customerwho had had a little too much to drinksaw it, and rushed back into the barand hollered, ‘they have come for us -they have landed.’”

Rockin BlackMountain Cab provid-ed the get-away transportation.

“Mymom and dad have been mar-ried for over 30 years, and Paul’s par-ents have been married for 48 years,setting an example for us to live upto,” Alisha said.

Alisha Bucy-Mayer and Paul Mayer show their happiness as they leave the Wild Hare as husband and wife in the Rockin Black Mountain cab. PHOTO PROVIDED BY HEATHER HAMBOR/

LOVE ATSECOND SIGHTBucy andMayerwedding

Alisha Bucy-Mayer and her grandmother, Virginia "Gigi" Bucy, share an intimatemoment. PHOTO PROVIDED BY HEATHER HAMBOR

By Barbara HootmanStaff Writer

Paul Mayer, the groom, and one of his groomsmen show off the elaborate candytable that was provided for guests. There were over 30 different kinds of candy.

Valley Weddings

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BLACK MOUNTAIN NEWS • WWW.BLACKMOUNTAINNEWS.COM THURSDAY, FEBRUARY13, 2014 • PAGE B3

Valley Wedding

K atharine Elizabeth Douglas andCraig Alan Taylor wed in GaitherChapel with a Scottish theme

wedding.The bride is the daughter of Dr. and

Mrs. Rusty Douglas, of Greenwood,Miss., and the granddaughter of theRev. Dr. HarryW. Philips, of Montreat,and the late Virginia Philips and thelate Mr. andMrs. Fred C. Douglas.

The decision to wed in Montreatwas based on Douglas wanting a small,simple wedding. Montreat providedthe perfect setting.

“My parents have had a home therefor 53 of my 56 years and it has been aconstant in all of our lives,” BettyDouglas, mother of the bride, said.“My father is a retired Presbyterianminister who now lives part-time inMontreat, and my husband is a Presby-terian minister. Our children havegrown up going to Montreat for ex-tended periods every summer, someThanksgivings, Christmases, and evenNew Years. Montreat is more than aplace in the life of our families. It isthe place where our family has played,vacationed, celebrated, conference,studied, and sometimes recoveredfrom life’s difficulties. It was a greatplace for my daughter and son-in-lawto begin their own life as a family.”

Escorted by her father, Katherinewalked down the aisle in an ivory V-neck gown of English netting and re-embroidered lace with cap sleeves andcrystal embellishment at the waist.The fit and flare gown finished in asweep train with spokes of cascadinglace. Her 88-year-old grandfatherconducted the first part of the wed-ding, and her father gave her awayand then conducted the second part ofthe service.

“One of my favorite memories ofKatharine’s wedding day is her stop-ping at the Montreat Memorial Gardento trace her Mimi’s name on the wall,”Betty said.

“We added thistle in the flowers forour Scottish heritage and my brides-maids wore purple in honor of mygrandmother, Mimi, who also had pur-ple dresses in her wedding,” Katherinesaid. “I used a ring I inherited frommyMimi as my wedding ring and myflower girl, Sloan Walker, wore a dressthat mymom had made for me to wearin a wedding when I was only sevenyears old.

Douglas’ aunt, Gina Averett, madeall the bouquets and boutonnieres forthe bridal party.

Scottish history and tradition meana lot to the Douglas family, and to Mon-treat residents. It played a large rolein the Douglas wedding.

“Presbyterianism was brought toAmerica by Scots,” Betty said. “Theties still run deep. We invited ourfriends to wear their kilts to the wed-ding. We had a sort of Scottish-themedwedding with a piper, Steve Agan,from Asheville, serenading the guests

as they arrived for the ceremony.Katharine and her dad processed to‘Highland Cathedral,’ played by thepiper, and Katharine and Craig re-cessed to the piper playing ‘Scotlandthe Brave.’ We had lots of thistles inthe bouquets, church flowers, and atthe reception. Even the square danc-ing at the reception, called, in goodMontreat tradition by Glenn Banner-man, had its roots in Scottish Reeldancing.”

“The square dance was a blast,because in the end anyone can dance ifsomeone tells you what to do,” Bettysaid. “The Crooked Pine Band played.”

“The men wearing kilts was a nodto our Scottish heritage,” Katharine

said. “I love the kilts and the traditionthat goes along with them, and beingin North Carolina, where many Scotssettled when they moved here, made itseem right. I also wanted my dad towear his kilt because it is the Douglastartan which represents our family,and I think he looks better in it than ina suit.”

Following the Scottish-themed wed-ding ceremony, a reception was held atthe Monte Vista Hotel in BlackMoun-tain.

“I had an army of talented friendsand family, who turned the chapel andthe Monte Vista into a wonderlandwith birchbark vases, which are veryScottish, mixed with sterling vases

and candelabra and little silver birds,”Betty said. “A few days before thewedding, my husband, Rusty, and I,took a ladder and decorated the en-trance to the hotel with North Carolinagarland, burlap and organdy, andlights. TheMonte Vista Hotel tookmuch of the worry out of the planningand the food was fabulous for the re-ception. The setting was warm andinviting. The cakestand held five dif-ferent cakes, family specialties, alongwith Mississippi Caramel Cakes, madeby Elizabeth Melton, a Mississippifriend. There was also a pre-weddingparty at the Douglas’ neighbor’s home,Rick Harbaugh. There was wine andcheese and the party ended with hot-buttered rum. There was a welcomeserenade by a bagpiper enjoyed fromthe front porch.”

The rehearsal dinner was hosted bythe groom’s parents at The Red Rock-er Inn. The restaurant closed to thepublic and let the guests order fromthe menu. They had their choice of 10homemade desserts to finish dinner.

“We had square dancing at ourBlackMountain reception because it isa family tradition,” Katharine said.“My parents and their cousins andfriends grew up going to Friday nightsquare dances in Montreat, and mybrother and I, along with our cousinsand friends, continued the tradition,and it is a Montreat tradition. I wasnervous at first, thinking not manypeople would dance, but before I knewit, the dance floor was full of peopleand all the ladies were kicking offtheir heels and bowing to their part-ners. Having the square dance wassomething unique for us which fits,because we were in such a uniqueplace.”

The Douglas-Taylor wedding party outside the entrance gate to Montreat. PHOTOS PROVIDED BY JENNINGS PHOTOGRAPHY

A MONTREATSCOTTISH WEDDING

Douglas and Taylor nuptials full of traditionBy Barbara HootmanStaff Writer

Katharine andCraig Taylor areshown withKatharine’s fatherin his kilt and her88-year-oldgrandfather, whoperformed part ofthe weddingceremony.

Katharine Taylortraces hergrandmother’sname in thememorial gardenin Montreat priorto her wedding.

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Valley Weddings

From centerpiecesto take-away favors,each bride and groomhave an opportunityto personalize theirwedding. Here is alook at some of theunique and creativeideas that our threebrides incorporatedinto their weddings.

PERSONAL FLAIR

Alisha Bucy-Mayer made her own bridal bouquet and those of her bridesmaids. The bridesmaids’ bouquets were made from origami paper flowers thattook months to make. PHOTO PROVIDED BY HEATHER HAMBOR

A cornhole game designedfor Morgan Johnson’sreception was a hugefavorite. PHOTO PROVIDED BY

GRAHAM TERHUNE

Alisha Bucy-Mayer made paper fan-wheels from bridal magazines and they hungbetween French doors from her great-grandmother’s house, that served as an altar. Alishaand her mother, Lenna, grew many of the beautiful flowers, and friends contributed morefrom their gardens. PHOTO PROVIDED BY HEATHER HAMBOR

Alisha Bucy-Mayer created some 20 terrariums for the guest tables from old glass candycontainers that she found in thrift stores throughout the 10 months she planned thewedding. PHOTO PROVIDED BY HEATHER HAMBOR

(left) MonrganJohnson chose toserve cupcakes invarious flavorsfrom hey heycupcake. PHOTO

PROVIDED BY GRAHAM

TERHUNE

Katharine andCraig Taylor’scakestand heldfive differentcakes, familyspecialties,along withMississippiCaramel Cakes.PHOTO PROVIDED BY

JENNINGS

PHOTOGRAPHY

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