Addision Powell & Neal Owens: A Shelby County Wedding

September 26, 2020

Photos by Janie Shelswell-White

How We Met: Neal and I (Addison) knew each other from high school, but when I moved home from college, we reconnected through soccer and kickball. Our first intentional interaction was at a Rugged Maniacs obstacle race. A friend had given me four free entries to the race, so my roommate and I asked two guys to do the race with us. I actually Facebook messaged Neal to invite him because I didn’t have his phone number.

The Proposal: We had a ski trip last winter, so Neal gave me new ski gloves for Christmas. He made sure I tried them on on Christmas morning, and the ring was in the glove. I didn’t find the ring the first time I tried them on, so I think Neal panicked a little bit, thinking the ring had fallen out somewhere.

Favorite Moment: On the morning before the wedding, we had coffee and exchanged letters. It was a really sweet moment and set a very intentional tone for the day.

Favorite Details: With all the changes due to coronavirus, we ended up having a tiny wedding with 20 people total, including Neal and me. This gave us flexibility, and we were able to have the wedding at my family’s farm, which was my original dream but had been nixed because it was too difficult logistically with a bigger wedding. I wrote the script for the ceremony, so we were able to shape it to reflect what matters most to us as a couple. My brother ended up officiating the ceremony, which I never in a million years would have imagined but he rocked it. The biggest surprise of the day was that my parents rented a horse-drawn carriage for me and my dad to ride in to the ceremony. I’ve never felt more like a princess in my life.