Grace United Methodist Church

Wedding Day

Wedding

Magnuson Franklin Square Inn

Reception

Our Wedding

As told by the bride:

In June of 2015, the summer before I started college, I went on a European tour with my high school band. We played a handful of concerts over the course of the two week, seven country tour; and on concert days, we wore matching t-shirts with our high school name on the front. I didn't know at the time, but Derek was studying abroad in Germany the same summer.&nbsp;On the day of the first concert, we were in the German town of Rothenburg and a&nbsp;stranger (guess who)&nbsp;approached my younger sister and asked what the abundance of&nbsp;shirts was for. Kelly explained that we were from Michigan and there for our band trip. Derek then got excited&nbsp;and said that he went to school in Michigan,&nbsp;and was&nbsp;studying Mechanical Engineering with an International&nbsp;German minor at Michigan Tech. Kelly told him that’s where her older sister (yours truly) would be starting college in the fall with the same major. When she told me about the run-in later that evening, we both thought it was a cool coincidence but didn’t think much of it. Tech is relatively small, but he was three years older, I didn’t know his name, or even what he looked like. There was no chance we would cross paths again, right? 



Fast forward to my second semester of college the following January. I was taking a social dance class for gym credit, and wore the Europe shirt to my second day of class. Imagine my surprise when "Germany Boy" came up to me and said, “Um, I think I met you in Europe...” Shocked, I clarified that it was Kelly that he met, and I guess the rest is history.&nbsp;Derek and I became dance partners, then&nbsp;friends, and started dating the following summer after he accepted a full-time job near my hometown!

How we met

As told by the groom: 

In April of 2016, right before the end of my senior year&nbsp;at MTU, I&nbsp;messaged my former&nbsp;dance partner&nbsp;and asked if she wanted to go on a motorcycle ride. She eagerly agreed, and when I&nbsp;picked her up, she&nbsp;asked me to put her keys&nbsp;in my jacket pocket. We&nbsp;took&nbsp;off from the dorms and went&nbsp;to Redridge Dam and Freda to explore some old copper country ruins. Once I dropped her off, I forgot&nbsp;to give back her keys and instead went&nbsp;in for an extremely awkward hug as she stood there waiting for me to return them. It became an inside joke that I&nbsp;was never going to give her keys back.&nbsp;Over the next two years of dating and knowing what a special place Houghton held in our hearts, I knew Redridge Dam was where I wanted to propose to Kathryn. It all came down to timing and convincing her that it wasn’t going to happen at the place we took our first motorcycle ride.&nbsp;















I planned a trip to the UP&nbsp;in the beginning of May 2018 to help Kathryn move out of her dorm room&nbsp;and to “meet&nbsp;up with&nbsp;some college friends for the weekend". This helped to minimize any suspicions that she had. &nbsp;We were supposed to “meet&nbsp;my friends for dinner" on Friday night, but we had some "extra time&nbsp;to kill" before that.&nbsp;I had suggested we go on a motorcycle ride to Redridge because it is one of my favorite roads and it brought back good memories.&nbsp;Unknown to Kathryn sitting&nbsp;behind me, the engagement ring was clipped to a key ring in my jacket pocket so that she wouldn’t feel a&nbsp;box.

























Once we got to Redridge Dam, we walked around for a few minutes and enjoyed the view and the rush of the water.&nbsp; As we began to loop around the side of the dam, I threw a few rocks at the wall&nbsp;which for some reason,&nbsp;Kathryn thought was normal. This was my signal to her hiding sorority sister to begin to take pictures, since our footsteps couldn't be heard over the flowing water. I led Kathryn to a&nbsp;tree I had found with a heart spray painted on it,&nbsp;then&nbsp;“dropped” the keys out of my pocket, giving me an excuse to get down&nbsp;on a knee. When I looked back up, I gave a cheesy line about not giving back her keys ever again, but she can have a ring instead. Luckily, she said yes and I got to keep the keys!

The Proposal

Our Story

Houghton

Kelly Keen

Cody Neverman

Alex Bergquist

Garrison Strand

James Perreault

Amber Boetsma

Noah deLongpré

Korinne Umlauft

Wedding Party

Photos

Q + A

Registry

Stylish joint with an elegant wood bar & antique murals for creative pizza, pasta & sandwiches. Be sure to try a fishbowl and the famous <a href="https://www.mlive.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2013/11/michigans_best_pizza_the_ambas.html" target="_blank">tostada</a>&nbsp;pizza. This is both the bride&nbsp;and groom's favorite restaurant in Houghton!

The Ambassador

A block of rooms is reserved for August 16 and 17&nbsp;at this hotel, which is also the reception venue. Shopping around may provide better rates, but this will help guarentee that a room is available.

To reserve a room in the block, call the hotel directly and ask for the Keen/Stone&nbsp;wedding rate, which is $129/night for two adults.&nbsp;Reservations should be made by July 15&nbsp;for the wedding rate. If you wish to arrive earlier or&nbsp;stay later than the blocked dates, you will still recieve the wedding rate. All rooms in the block have a view of the water.

Named #9 on Mlive's <a href="https://www.mlive.com/michigansbest/2018/06/michigans_best_mexican_restaur.html" target="_blank">10 Best Mexican Restaurants in Michigan</a>&nbsp;in 2018, La Cantina features a wide&nbsp;variety of traditional Mexican favorites, which come with complimentary chips and salsa.

La Cantina

Visit the <a href="https://www.keweenaw.info/where-would-you-like-to-stay/" target="_blank">Keweenaw Info</a> and <a href="https://www.mtu.edu/admissions/visit/lodging/" target="_blank">Michigan Tech</a> websites for additional lodging in the area. If you plan to attend, please make your reservations early!

List of Accomodations

Fish prepared many ways, plus steak, pasta & more, in a tin-ceilinged space with nautical decor.

Joey's Seafood & Grill

Roomy, relaxed place with an intimate cocktail lounge offering classic Chinese & other Asian dishes.

Bambu Asian Restaurant

Upscale bar & restaurant focusing on steaks, seafood & other traditional American fare.

Pilgrim River Steakhouse

Homey eatery featuring traditional Finnish-style breakfasts & pastries for more than 40 years.

Suomi Home Bakery & Restaurant

Roy's bakes the best Pasties daily along with fresh breads and pastries. Stop in for a great lunch or to take home your favorite items. This is also our wedding cake baker!

Roy's Pasties & Bakery

The Keweenaw Brewing Company, located in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, was founded with the goal of turning beer drinkers into craft beer lovers.

Keweenaw Brewing Company

The oldest coffeehouse in the UP.

Cyberia Cafe

Sweets & savories on 3-tiered trays offered in a charming cafe for English-style tea service.

Four Seasons Tea Room

Travel

Walk through Downtown Houghton and visit the small shops and restaurants along the Portage Canal. There is a paved walking trail along the water with plenty of beautiful places to stop along the way! Not to mention, you'll have a great view of the Houghton/Hancock Lift Bridge.

Downtown Houghton

One of North America’s premier mineral museums, the A. E. Seaman Mineral Museum is nationally and internationally recognized by mineral collectors and connoisseurs. Featuring the largest public exhibit and finest collection of minerals from the Great Lakes region and the world’s best collection of Michigan minerals, the museum exhibits feature the rich&nbsp;colors&nbsp;of nature's masterpieces. While visitors marvel, they learn about minerals through informative displays and discover how minerals are important in your life.

A. E. Seaman Mineral Museum

The Quincy Mine is an extensive set of copper mines located near Hancock, Michigan. The mine was owned by the Quincy Mining Company and operated between 1846 and 1945, although some activities continued through the 1970s. The Quincy Mine was known as "Old Reliable," as the Quincy Mine Company paid a dividend to investors every year from 1868 through 1920. The Quincy Mining Company Historic District is a United States National Historic Landmark District;&nbsp;other Quincy Mine properties nearby, including the Quincy Mining Company Stamp Mills,&nbsp;the Quincy Dredge Number Two, and the Quincy Smelter are also historically significant.

Quincy Mine

This is where we got engaged!&nbsp;The Redridge Steel Dam is a steel dam across the Salmon Trout River in Redridge, Houghton County, Michigan. Completed in 1901, it is a flat slab buttress dam constructed of steel, a relatively rare material for construction of dams, which are typically earthenworks or masonry. Most sources indicate it was one of only three such dams constructed in the United States, the other two being the Ashfork-Bainbridge Steel Dam (1898, Arizona) and the Hauser Lake Dam (1907, Montana), the last of which failed within a year of construction.

Redridge Steel Dam

Hungarian Falls is a series of waterfalls in the Dover Creek west of Hubbell, in Houghton County, Michigan. The site is near State Highway 26 in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. There are three drops with the largest being 50 feet. The falls are easy to get to, and a favorite among Michigan Tech students.

Hungarian Falls

F.J. McLain State Park is a 443-acre (179 ha) state park on the Keweenaw Peninsula in Houghton County, Michigan. It is located on M-203 halfway between Hancock and Calumet.&nbsp;The park is on the shore of Lake Superior, and most of the beach areas are rocky. However, a stretch of land known as the Breakwaters, on the edge of the park near the Keweenaw Waterway, is sandy and popular for swimming. There are also swimming areas adjacent to the campground.

Kathryn & Derek