As the bride’s father, Bob, reminded guests in his wedding toast to the newly married couple: The pair’s parents predicted that Emily and Chris were meant for each other—even before the two had met!

Well, okay, it wasn’t a perfect prediction. Chris’s mom, Wendie, got it a bit wrong when, after hiring Emily as an intern at Country Club of Boyne, at Boyne Highlands, she thought that the young woman would be a perfect match for her son Jaimen, Chris’s brother. But Bob called it. As he told the story at the wedding, when he and his wife, Wendy, were dropping their daughter off for her internship, they took time to have lunch at the Country Club. Chris was their waiter. When he was out of earshot, Bob said to Emily, “Maybe you’ll meet a nice guy like him.”

Turns out, her father knew best. Before the end of the summer Emily and Chris were dating. To make things more fun, when she got back to Michigan State in the fall, Emily fixed her best friend, Alex, up with Jaimen, who was also a Spartan. And now they are married!

Emily and Chris dated five years, most of it long distance, before Chris proposed last Thanksgiving. Given that their romance started at the Country Club of Boyne—and given that the Harbor Springs area is destination-wedding heaven—the couple naturally decided to have their wedding there.

The fun kicked off with a Thursday evening rehearsal at Pond Hill Farm, a combination farm, winery, brewery and cafe set on the famously scenic M119—otherwise known as the tunnel of trees. The event was a kicked-back barbecue where the guests had the run of the farm, including trying their hands at Pond Hill’s wacky squash shooters. Yup, the game is really about winging squash across the countryside.

By Friday, most of the 150 guests had arrived to check in to Boyne Highlands, with its myriad of accommodations, from lodge rooms to cottages. There were plenty of participants for a group golf outing on the Highlands’ beautiful course, The Moor—one of four Highlands courses.

The relaxed, romantic ceremony, officiated by Chris’s stepfather, Brad Keen, was held on the Country Club’s back patio overlooking the 18th hole of the Highlands’ Donald Ross Memorial golf course. After the ceremony, as Chris and Emily walked down the aisle, her cousin handed her a phone: her grandmother, who couldn’t attend the wedding, was on face time and had gotten to watch the ceremony. Emily recalls it as one of the most special moments of a very special day.

Dinner was preceded by cocktails on the patio. Dancing on the patio followed the meal. And after that? When at Boyne Highlands, the bridal party and guests (who still had energy!) did what Boyne Highlanders do, in the summer anyway: They closed down the Slopeside Lounge!

This Boyne Highlands Wedding is in the 2017 issue of MyNorth Wedding.
Get your copy for more Northern Michigan wedding inspiration!

The bridesmaids’ dresses were by Joanna August.

The bridal gown is by Stella York.

For dessert, the couple opted for a small cutting cake and trays of Harbor Springs’ famous Tom’s Mom’s Cookies.

Guests snapped photos of themselves with a Polaroid camera for the guest book.

The wedding party: From Top, left to right: Danny Waldron, Olivia Huhn-Tarvuud, Justin Sylvester, Chris Waha (groom), Joe Clair, Billy Hurley, Alyssa Winslow; middle row: Jacquie Meehan, Sarah Cooper, Emily Waha (bride), Laura Clair, Jaimen Waha; Bottom row (triangle): Jennifer Tyrell, Alexander Waha, Alexandra Waha.

Emily borrowed a machine called a Cricut to cut out the letters (and then stick them on) the signs. “It took a long time!” she says.

Plenty of candles and white and blush flower arrangements created the relaxed romantic atmosphere Emily was looking for.


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More Northern Michigan Wedding Inspiration:

Rustic Grand Traverse Resort & Spa Wedding

16 Northern Michigan Wedding Ideas to Make Your Big Day Perfect!

Breathtaking Barn Wedding at Charlevoix Country Club (with Pistons star Bill Laimbeer!)

Photo(s) by Stephanie Baker Photography