Sunshine & Smiles

Ste Anne’s Catholic Church and Mission Point Resort provided the perfect wedding day for Elizabeth and Ben and their beautiful bridal party.

Elizabeth and Ben met and fell in love during their Michigan State days. Most of their friends and bridal party were well connected as well by their alma mater. Their affection for Mackinac Island was mutual. Their plans began 2 years in advance of their wedding, and the arrangements for their Island vendors was accomplished the summer prior to their wedding.

The wedding ceremony at Ste Anne’s was planned for 2 pm. Christi Dupre from Island Photo arrived to begin coverage at Mission Point Resort two hours before the wedding ceremony, meeting with Elizabeth at the Lakeside Salon & Spa located at Mission Point. Elizabeth and her sister finished the getting ready in the beautiful Patrick Sinclair Suite at Mission Point. They guys were just across the hall, making for lots of fun between the two groups. Beautiful flowers from Weber’s Floral were delivered to the hotel and set up at the church, splendid white roses with accents of free flowing greenery.

The beautiful lobby and grounds at the resort provided several options for lovely photos for the Elizabeth and her father and the bridal party. The bride and groom led the walk down to the church on this pictur perfect August afternoon.

The wedding ceremony was attended by over 100 close friends and family. Photos of the families were taken at the church and the wedding carriage arrived to take Elizabeth and Ben on their romantic ride through the Island.

Riding through town and stopping at beautiful locations for photos produced some photo treasures! Elizabeth and Ben loved every minute of being the Prince and Princess of Mackinac Island for the day. The wedding carriage, provided by Gough Livery, manuevered quickly through the streets taking them to the Boardwalk, the Secret Garden, Marquette Park and then back to Mission Point Resort.

Family and bridal party enjoyed cocktails and hor d’oeuvres on the Promenade Deck, coming down to meet Elizabeth and Ben on the Great Lawn to take a few more photos before the party on the Deck was to begin.

The reception was held at the Promenade Deck at Mission Point Resort. Guests were treated to a dinner of fillet mignon or chicken with a cranberry/goat cheese salad, and layered potato medley. Toasts were given by the best man and maid of honor. The Wedding Cake was from Bella e Dolce, and fudge favors at every place setting were provided by Joann’s Fudge. The dancing got going as guests enjoyed the patio, corn hole and just mingling together. Congratulations to the beautiful couple!

June Wedding Bells at Mission Point

Tayler & Bryan were married on June 18th at the Mission Point Resort Gazebo. Tayler’s beautiful bouquet and all of the floral arrangements were created by St Ignace in Bloom.

The wedding ceremony was performed by Bryan’s Father. The weather was warm and the refreshing breezes from the lake kept everyone cool.

Island Photo was the photographer capturing beautiful photos of the entire day. After the wedding ceremony, the bridal party gathered for fun photos followed by walk to the shoreline with Bryan and Tayler for photos around the lovely resort.

The reception was held on the Promendade Deck of Mission Point Resort. The tables were decorated in various pastels and sported lots of desserts! The views from the deck were spectacular and the music and cheering welcomed the newlyweds to the dance floor.

Dancing to their favorite tunes, everyone got into the party, including their “best dog” who made the day with his exceptional cuteness.

Music was provided by A List Event Group, keeping the party going into the night. A simply beautiful wedding cake was provided by Bella e Dolce, and they choose to feed one another bites of the dellicious creation!

June is a perfect time to be married on Mackinac. Tayler and Bryan choose a Sunday for their wedding, allowing their guests to travel or enjoy the Island on Saturday. The beautiful lilacs are in bloom in June, and the weather usually warms to summer temperatures, yet the lake is cool and breezes are a delight. To plan your wedding, order the free Wedding Guide magazine, available here to be mailed to your home.

Our Cover Story Made on Mackinac

Story by Adrienne Rilenge - Photos by Andrejka Photography

Our wedding on August 6, 2022, on Mackinac Island was, without question, the best, most magical and love-filled day of our lives. The entire experience of becoming husband and wife was the biggest blessing, and both of us are humbled by how much love and support we have received from those we hold most dear to our hearts.

Nathan and I met in 2010 and were just friends until we started dating in 2016. I was still in college when we made our relationship official, and Nathan would travel the 12 hours to North Carolina to visit me. Although at times difficult, we made our long-distance relationship work for the remainder of my time in school. 

Nathan proposed on February 7, 2021 on Mackinac in one of our favorite spots.  It was absolutely freezing outside, it was snowing, and it was perfect.

Growing up on Mackinac Island, I always knew that I wanted to be married at Ste Anne’s Catholic Church and to have the reception in my family’s garden.  It was so special to me to have the beautiful place that I grew up be the backdrop of the most important day of our lives. 

Planning a wedding at our home was no easy feat.  I knew immediately that we needed as much help as we could, so we hired our amazing wedding planner, Carole Erbel, of For the Love of Mackinac ! who was quite literally our wedding fairy-godmother.  None of our day would have been possible without Carole.

The decor style of the wedding was to feel overgrown and lush with greenery while also extremely timeless. Loly with the Little Postage House, set the tone for our wedding with the most exquisite hand-pressed custom invitations. She even used vintage postage stamps to tell our love story.  

 Kate Dupre, of Watercolor Café created an itinerary program, bringing together all of our wedding guest activities into one amazing and beautiful fold out guide. It even had a word search in it! We tucked it into our guest bags along with weekend snack and recovery essentials and had the bags delivered in advance to each of our guest’s hotel rooms.

Since Mackinac is a destination for people to travel to, we knew we wanted our wedding to be a weekend experience. For Nathan and me, our day was as much about the guests as it was for us. We wanted people to leave our wedding weekend better understanding who Nathan and I are as a couple and for them to have lasting memories of a lifetime. 

The festivities started on Thursday with a morning Pilates class taught by me and continued with a guided hike on some of Nathan and my favorite trails.  We ended Thursday with a welcome barbecue.  Most people arrived Thursday, so this was a great way for all the families and wedding party to meet and relax before the big festivities began!

On Friday morning, we hosted a golf tournament at Wawashkamo Golf Club as golf is our favorite summer thing to do. I surprised everyone by sporting a US Masters style caddy uniform!

Our wedding rehearsal went off without a hitch thanks to For the Love of Mackinac and our priest from Sault Ste Marie, Father Mark McQuesten.  My rehearsal dress was created by Alexia Maria and my shoes were Dolce & Gabbana.  Our rehearsal dinner was hosted by Nathan’s parents at the Mackinac Island Yacht Club.  We had beautiful floral arrangements created from our wedding floral designer, St Ignace in Bloom. Afterwards, we departed to meet more of our guests on the Sip’ N ’Sail for a sunset cruise under the Mackinac Bridge.  The music, weather and the views of the bridge were perfect.

The morning of the wedding was extremely relaxing and so much fun.  It was amazing to have all my best friends come over to my parents to get ready since, as kids, we would all get ready for big events in my parent’s beautiful sun-filled master bedroom turret.   My mom and best friend helped me into my beautiful Monique Lhuillier gown which I purchased in Biminghan at Roma Sposa. My accessories were my Romona Keveza bolero, Manolo Blahnik heels, and handmade Lena Rom headpiece. Being one for drama, I had a custom veil made that was 24-feet long!

One of my favorite parts of the day was the first look I did with my father.  Andrejka Hirsch, of Andrejka Photography, captured my tears perfectly of when I first saw my dad and it’s one of my favorite photos from the day. 

My parents and I headed to the church in Grand Hotel’s Vis a Vis wicker carriage, and it took a crew of three to help me get out of the carriage with my long train and veil.  The flowers at the church were incredible. Samantha and her crew of St Ignace in Bloom, had created 34 arrangements using all white roses, snap dragons, babies breath, daisies, and carnationsto line the church aisle to make the aisle look like I was walking through a garden. We also had made two 8 foot pieces of the same flowers placed outside of the church doors.

The wedding began with incredible piano played by Mackinac Island’s John Kissaine.  I walked down the flower filled aisle to Andrea Bocelli’s The Prayer, and I cried when I saw the faces of all those I love most, and most importantly, when I saw my very soon-to-be husband waiting for me at the end of the aisle.

After we were announced husband and wife, we departed on a carriage ride and took photos at all our favorite spots with our amazing photographer, Andrejka  and wonderful videographer who captured our day perfectly, Gabi.

 The reception scene at my family home was breathtaking! Our guests enjoyed a cocktail hour in our garden before the announcement of the bridal party and Nate and I.  We loved our champagne tower as the festivities and love flowed big and everyone joined in the fun. Toasts were made and thank-you’s given to our wonderful parents.

Our reception tent was magical.  Samantha Belogna and St. Ignace in Bloom created the most insane, beautiful, and jaw dropping floral displays I have ever seen.  When I say we didn’t skimp on flowers, we absolutely did not and Samantha made my vision come to life better than I could imagined.

Following dinner and toasts,  we danced the night away to The Crasherz, an eleven- piece band that everyone loved. Nathan and I reveled in every moment of love and mustered every minute of fun we could imagine. I  even did an impromptu song with the band,  performing “Proud Mary”.

Slipping out for a change to my reception party dress by Viero Bridal, purchased at Abendmode Bridal store in Royal Oak, we met up with our “Best Dog”—our Nova Scotia Mule, Bradley, for some play time and photos on the beautiful Woods golf course. The photos and video are wonderful, and we will treasure them forever. 

 In all, the childhood Mackinac Island wedding I had always dreamed of was far better than I had imagined.   It truly was a wedding of love, and we made the weekend as detailed and as “us” as we could.

 I am so grateful I booked my vendors early and was thorough in my preperation. I also knew to trust my expert vendors who knew the Island inside and out. I can’t imagine planning a wedding without the help of the fantastic Island vendors and our wonderful family and friends.

 It truly was the happiest day of our lives.

Welcome to the Happiest Day of Our Lives

The happiest day in a couple’s marriage begins with their Wedding Day. For Kelsey and Kevin, from the start to the conclusion, they used three words to describe their wedding - “small, yet special” and after the wedding “The Best Day.” Surrounded by family at Grand Hotel, one of the most beautiful resorts in the world, Kevin and Kelsey said “I Do. “

Kelsey and her parent’s had made Mackinac Island a central part of their summer vacations for many years. Now living in Jacksonville, Florida coming “home” to Michigan meant the wedding of her dreams at Ste Anne’s Church and Grand Hotel. Wedding photos began with their photographer Christi Dupre from Island Photo with Kevin and family at the Island House Hotel and Kelsey and her parents at Grand Hotel. Both were excited and a little nervous! The suite at Grand Hotel was perfect for some getting ready photos of Kelsey.

The red carpeted steps led Kelsey to the Grand Hotel’s private carriage and as the bellman opened the door, Kelsey stepped into her dream day!  Kelsey’s beautiful hair and make-up was done at Astor Salon and her bouquet all all of her wedding flowers were from Margaret’s Garden at Grand Hotel. 

Ste Anne’s Catholic Church dates marriage records back to the late 1600’s, with the church being physically moved and reestablished on Mackinac Island in1 780.  Since thenn, hundreds of couples have been married at Ste Annes.  Father Mark McQuesten, of Sault Ste Marie, performed the ceremony which included mass, special readings and music by the Mike Davis Trio.  

On this beautiful mid-July day, Kelsey and Kevin left the church and went for a royal ride in the white Vis-a- Vis carriage from Gough Livery. The photos on the beach and at the Grand Hotel’s Secret Garden were Kelsey’s favorites.

Returning to Grand Hotel, the reception was held in the Cottage Room, a very romantic and intimate setting for a splendid reception. All guests were seated at one table, allowing the entire family to converse together and celebrate this fantastic event. Cake cutting and toasts were given before the staff began to serve the delicious 5 course meal. Special moments between Kelsey and her Dad and the entire family left many eyes with a special tear.

As the sun began to set, Kelsey and Kevin stepped away for a little time together - on Grand Hotel’s porch, the world’s longest porch. with views of the Straits of Mackinac. A spectacular view, yet they only had eyes for one another!

Oh Those Summer Days and Nights

Fun was on the menu when Sara And Zack began planning their wedding on Mission Point. Desiring to bring together two large families and a gang of good friends, they chose the Great Lawn waterfront setting at Mission Point Resort and their Promenade Deck as the perfect place to say “I Do”.

Sara and her sister and friends from work, college, and childhood gathered for champagne toasts and fun in a beautiful suite at Mission Point Resort. The bridemaids dresses were different shades of purple, to match the variety of lilacs in bloom all over the Island that day. The girls had gotten hair and make-up done at the Lakeside Spa and Salon. The bride’s bouquet was created by St Ignace in Bloom.

Zach, and most of his high school football team, were coordinated with the bridesmaids with mauve ties and pocket handkerchiefs. They decided to gather at the Round Island Bar, and once everyone together, they headed to the Great Lawn for the ceremony.

Zach’s former football coach and pastor of his church performed the ceremony. Lots of smiles and joy exploded and the celebration began! A wedding carriage from Gough Livery took them on a ride through the Island for photos with Christi, from Island Photo on Mackinac Island, following on her bicycle. Some of the most beautiful photos, especially during the lilac season can be had during the wedding carriage ride.

Arriving back to Mission Point, the wedding reception party could begin. DJ Michael was the perfect emcee, and the personal reception favors and appetizers were enjoyed quickly by this exuberant crowd! From Pittsburg, Sara arranged a cookie table with numerous delicious cookies for now or packaged for later. A coffee bean roaster, Zach bagged his own beans and they made for wonderful reception favors. Dinner was surf or turf, and Sara and Zach shared with one another as the bridal party and family had fun!

A beautiful wedding cake and a groom’s cake were created by Bella e Dolce, delicious and so attractive. After dinner, Zach and Sara started the dancing, followed by very joyful and emotional dances by the bride and her father and Zach and his mother. The party then went into full swing with lots of great music, drinks and even a seranade to Zach’s mom from all his highschool buddies.

A Patriot's Mackinac Island Wedding

Exchanging vows on Mackinac Island during this patriotic holiday fell into perfect place for Stephanie and David. The beauty and privacy at Mission Point’s gazebo was just what this couple desired. When the date of Memorial Day became available at Mission Point, they jumped on this opportunity knowing it make this all all the more special.

Stephanie began her day with hair and make-up at the Lakeside Salon and Spa and Mission Point Resort. She selected Island Photo of Mackinac Island who arrived to get photos of Stephanie in her suite at Mission Point. David and his brother met up for photos at the Round Island Kitchen and the family headed down to the waterfront Gazebo on a lovely May day.

The wedding reception was held in the beautiful Colonial Room at Mission Point Resort. A large table for all guests was exquisitely decorated in gold and candlestick holders. Music and dancing took place after a delicious dinner.

Having a Fort Mackinac Wedding

Ever wondered what it might be like to exchange your vows on a platform facing the view shared by soldiers 200 years ago? With historic buildings and cannons dating back into the early 1800’s announcing your union.

This was this Memorial Day weekend wedding which took place between Jackie and Rich at Historic Fort Mackinac.

Mission Point Resort was the host of the bridal party and family and also provided the dinner following the wedding. Flowers for the bride were provided by St Ignace in Bloom and wedding photos by Island Photo.

Following the wedding at Fort Mackinac, bride and groom departed on a private carriage ride provided by Mackinac Island Carriage Tours. A beautiful late May day, with tulips, fresh leaves and flowers were the perfect setting for many photos.

The carriage ride ended at beautiful Mission Point Resort, with their numerous tulip gardens and beautiful grounds. A reception took place in the Colonial Room for family and friends. What an amazing wedding ceremony and recpetion! Unique and Pure Michigan! Getting Married on Mackinac is like no other place in the world!

The Story Behind the 2022 Cover

The Story Behind the 2022

Wedding Guide Cover

By Diana [Dupre] Scott

wedding photos by It’s Wonderful Photography

Ever since I was a little girl, I remember weddings being a part of our family. Both of my parents are wedding photographers and the publishers of the Mackinac Island Wedding Guide. We spent summer seasons on the island, so getting married on Mackinac Island was something that I imagined many times.  Still, I had no idea what it all entailed and how amazing it would be!

My engagement to Jessee Scott took place on Mackinac Island July 3rd, 2020.  We considered being married in Florida, where Jessee was raised and where most of his family and many of our friends live.  However, we both love Mackinac Island and of course as said, a Mackinac Island wedding had my heart.

Immediately after our engagement, we spent a day riding our bikes and looking at different venues for our ceremony and we both fell in love with the gazebo at Mission Point Resort.  Dates were already limited and we selected Sunday, August 8th and began working with the wonderful wedding coordinator at Mission Point. 

The save the date cards and our wedding invitation were created by Kate Dupre of Watercolor Cafe.  She made my vision so beautiful with her ideas and custom artwork and illustrations. 

As it is important to book services when selecting peak summer dates-so we began to create a wedding weekend of fun!

The wedding weekend started off with a meet up with many of our family and friends for a bike to the beach picnic at a point close to British Landing. I wanted everyone to go for a swim in Lake Huron, as swimming in the cool waters and sunning on the beach is a favorite summer memory of mine.  Being August, the lake and weather is about as warm as it gets, yet still too cold for some of my Florida friends! 

We both loved the Sip N Sail boat, and we chartered the boat to welcome family & friends the evening following the swim.  Everyone loved meeting one another and the entertainment was fabulous.  Following the cruise, we all went to Marquette Park for the Thursday concert in the Park and sponsored by the Mackinac Arts Council.  We brought blankets and enjoyed snacks and drinks from Doud’s Market.  The rest of the evening we enjoyed more live music and the Island’s fun nightlife scene. 

The day before the wedding, we organized a hike up into the interior of Island led by my aunt. That afternoon, we had a Meet and Greet at Watercolor Cafe.  This quaint little waterfront café hosted our gatherings on the outside deck with light appetizers. 

It was fun and relaxing and led perfectly into our bridal party’s getaway to our wedding rehearsal.  Our wedding coordinator, Carole Erbel of For the Love of Mackinac, met us at Mission Point Resort and made sure all the wedding party knew what to expect the following day.  For our rehearsal dinner, Jessee’s family selected the Harbour View Inn, which proved a fantastic location for a wonderful dinner with a private setting for toasts. 

Afterwards, we met at the Gatehouse for Karaoke Night with DJ Brevin, which proved to be hilarious.  On Mackinac, people can easily gather together and the fun just begins. 

The morning of the wedding, I awoke to a downpour of rain!  Appointments at the salon began in the morning.  I had already met with stylist and owner Christy Lucas of Vintage Glam on Market.  She and her assistant stylist took care of all nine of us–bridal party and mothers.  Lunch came delivered via my Dad who bicycled in the rain, delivering salads from the Ice House at Island House Hotel. Taxis from Mackinac Island Carriage Tours arranged picked up all up to go to get dressed and await meet our photographer.  I was able to see my wedding bouquet for the first time.  Samantha at St Ignace in Bloom was so helpful, and all my flowers were even more beautiful than I expected.   

Our photographer was Sarah Wright of It’s Wonderful Photography.  Sarah is amazing.  Her attitude was so upbeat and her style was directive without being overbearing.  We were given the best gift ever on our wedding day – the gift of beautiful photos and memories captured by these talented Island photographers.  Our wedding videographer was Gabi Bowdich, videographer and entertainer on the Island.  We loved our video and can’t imagine not having a video to remind us of how perfect our wedding day was. 

Speaking of perfection, the rain stopped an hour before our ceremony and Carole and Mission Point made sure we could still be married outside at the gazebo.  The wedding carriage picked my Dad and I up and took us to the gazebo.  I will never forget the faces of all the people who had come to our wedding and feeling so overwhelmed with love and gratitude. A wonderful family member performed our service, it was so special.  The sun came out, and we were pronounced husband and wife. 

Gough Livery took us on a wonderful carriage ride through the downtown and to the beach for more photos.  Our wedding reception took place at a private facility for members only, the Mackinac Island Yacht Club.  

Our wedding cake was by Annie’s Cakes, who is a longtime friend and excellent baker. We enjoyed delicious and adorable fudge favors from Joann’s Fudge.  Dancing and dining went quickly, and it was time for us to leave the next day for our honeymoon. 

Wedding planning and execution take a lot of time and energy, but there’s not a better place for a wedding than on Mackinac Island.  The local vendors are the best!  Figuring out transportation for people all over get to Mackinac was made easier by both ferry companies, Shepler’s Ferry and Star Line Ferry, who offered discounts for all of our guests.  That also helped them access their information page for transportation and luggage information.  We put together a last minute frequently asked questions list that was helpful….and our wedding website linked to the digital version of the official guide book, Inside Mackinac which our guests loved. 

If there was anything we would do differently, it might be to not leave the Island so quickly.  But we’ll come back again and again.  Because when you are married on Mackinac you are given a little slice of the Island that is yours forever.