The Willow Wedding & Event Venue

Wedding Day

Ceremony

Cocktail Hour

Reception

LET'S TAKE A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE

Our Wedding

Emily's Perspective 

Something you should know; I am in love with Arizona as much as I despise Arizona. The sunsets, unreal. The heat, dreadful. The desert, breathtaking. The lack of things to do outside before mid-October, unforgivable. Which is where this story begins in a little college bar called Devil’s Advocate. It’s located just on the edge of ASU’s campus, and it will remain one of my favorite college memories. When we first heard of Devil’s, my roommates and I were freshly 21 and looking for literally anything to do and I mean how could we turn down 2 for 1 drink deals!? It was just another hot Thursday when we walked into Devil’s and were at the bar when Kendall saw a familiar face. She briefly introduced us, and I politely made an excuse to pull her away and leave these random people. Matt will say that he couldn’t stop thinking about me, I think he’s being a tad dramatic, I on the other hand didn’t give him another thought (every night was girls night). That is until they resurfaced at a table my friends and I were at. He made me laugh but he also gave me an incredibly hard time for having a black nail design and the fact that it was my favorite color. Why did I want to continue talking to the guy insulting my favorite color? We will never know. The night was coming to an end as the bar was getting ready to close and that’s when Matt asked Kendall and I if we wanted to keep hanging out with him and his friends. So, we walked back to his place, and we continued the night playing games and getting to know each other. Supposedly he “impressed” me with his beer pong skills, but I think it was just the fact that he was cute, charming, and made me laugh but sure babe those beer pong skills really sold me. I didn’t make it easy on him the next few weeks, but he didn’t get deterred by my indecisiveness. On my way home from work one Thursday evening, he texted me and said “Can you be ready in an hour?” I immediately detoured to Kendall’s work and was freaking out, asking her what to wear, what I should do? I still had no idea what the plan was, but something told me it was the right thing to do. I showed up to find out we were going to see The Zac Brown Band, which is one of my favorite groups! Almost seven years later Matt and I had to compare our stories of when and what happened that night, but what is true for both was that it was the best decision we ever made. Arizona is horribly hot most of the year but the best memories I have happened right in the middle of the heat.&nbsp;

Matt's Perspective

The unfortunate truth of being an Arizona native is that you really never get use to the heat. The calendar may say that fall has begun, but the sun does its best to argue the continuation of summer. Thoughts of a cold evening beverage were too tempting to pass up on, so my friend and I walked to the nearby sports bar for a drink. Devil’s Advocate was a popular spot for the local college students to hang out, especially on Thursdays. We decided to try to find a seat out on the patio somewhere, so we made our way outside. On our way, I caught a glimpse of a familiar face from years past which forced a double take. It was Kendall! It had been years since I had seen her, so I rushed to say hello. She was with a friend, a cute blonde girl with glasses and black fingernails. She was introduced as Emily, a friend from high school. I was a little surprised I hadn’t met her before, but I was glad I was meeting her now. The four of us talked for a while but eventually continued the night separately. Emily will say she doesn’t know how to fish, but that’s a lie. Looking back now, I can see the hook had already been set. I no longer wanted to meet new groups of people. I was intrigued. I simply had to talk to her again, to know more about her. My friend and I made several rounds through the crowds of people hoping we would see them, but we failed. Eventually I closed out my tab and prepared for the short walk home. As we were heading for the door, I saw her. She was sitting at a table with Kendall and a group of people. I didn’t know if they knew each other or not, but I had to say something. The music volume had been increasingly growing as the night progressed and was now to the point where conversation was very difficult. I asked the girls if they wanted to walk back to my apartment and continue hanging out, and I was ecstatic when they both said yes. I’m sure my history with Kendall gave them a sense of safety. We shortly arrived at my complex, and I entered the gate code. We got into my apartment and sat down on the couch, a huge upgrade from the hard bar stools and constant bumping from strangers. I can’t even remember if we played any games or not, but I do remember how captivating she was. As the night grew later and later, I knew they would be leaving soon. I thought if I didn’t make my move, it may never happen. In a rare moment of courage, I leaned in and kissed her. &nbsp;It was the kind of kiss that you don’t want to end, the kind of kiss that makes you feel your heart in your chest and butterflies in your stomach. We pulled away and laughed, both smiling. I hope she felt the way I did. I offered to walk them back to their car across the street, but they said they would be fine. Chivalry isn’t dead, it’s just denied. We exchanged phone numbers and said our goodbyes. I didn’t make her wait long before I asked her out on our first date, to a Zac Brown Band concert. And the rest is history.

Our Story

Photos

Sarah Walker 

Kendall Meyer 

Dylan Nall

Jaymee Campbell

Jessica Repp

Kendra Campbell

Saphinia Apergis 

Taylor Meyer 

Jake Stahnke

Derrick Bowen

Garrett Repp

Kohl Geisinger 

Tyler Fowler 

Wedding Party

Q + A

Choosing a place to stay:

We want to give you all the details so you can pick a hotel/airport that is going to make your trip the best! Emily and Matt's family both live in the Chandler/Gilbert area which is about 1 hour and 15 minutes away from the actual wedding venue. The views are worth it, we promise!Below we have included 3 hotels, 2 of them are in Surprise and 1 in Gilbert.Whether you chose to stay close to the venue or close to family, we are so excited to be celebrating with you and can't wait to see everyone!

Hotels

Near Surprise Stadium, 15-20 minutes away from venue.Call and ask for wedding rate or give this code to apply wedding rate: L-WED

Residence Inn by Marriott Phoenix NW/Surprise

Hilton Garden Inn Surprise Phoenix

Near Surprise Stadium. 15-20 minutes away from venueCall and ask for wedding rate or give this code to apply wedding rate: L-WED

Holiday Inn Express & Suites Surprise, an IHG Hotel

Home2 Suites by Hilton Gilbert

Airports 

Phoenix Sky Harbor: the most central and common airport. It is about 40 miles from the hotel options in Surprise (near the venue) and 28 miles from Emily and Matt's families.&nbsp;Phoenix-Mesa Gateway: Much smaller airport and on the same side of town as both Emily and Matt's family. It is about 10 miles from the hotel option in Gilbert.

Travel

Things to Do

Registry

Emily & Matt

Emily & Matt

Registry