The Lumber Yard Events Center

Our Wedding Day

Ceremony

Cocktail Hour

Reception

Our Wedding

Hello readers, this is our story written by Kyle. Madison and I met back in the summer of 2022 at SpringHill Overnight Christian Camp in Evart, MI, where we both served on staff. Madison had worked at camp in 2021 and was returning for her second summer. I grew up going to camp and wanted to have a job that involved serving others in some capacity, which led me to SpringHill. I knew very few people when I first arrived, but Madison had a group of friends that she came back with for another summer. We met on the 2nd day of staff training while playing volleyball in the gym with everyone. From then on, we kept seeing each other frequently, and she would always invite me to hang out with her friends while they played sports or explored camp. This continued, and I knew very early on that I was interested in her. I kept wondering how I would get the chance to go on a date with her, as we were both living and working at camp at the time. I learned that her family also lived on the east side of the state. So, when staff was given the Fourth of July week off, I asked her on a date while we were both at home. This went great because in the same week, we went on a second date. Fast forward, after camp had ended (August 2022), we officially started dating and began our long-distance relationship from Grand Rapids to Mount Pleasant. Long distance continued all the way until Madison graduated, and moved to Grand Rapids in July 2024 (I like to say she was following me). Going from being an hour and a half away to living only 10 minutes apart from each other was incredibly rewarding after two years. Our relationship grew closer, and I always wanted her to feel comfortable in her job and with Grand Rapids before we thought of the next steps. Time went on and I knew we both wanted to make our relationship more serious. In February of 2025, we started to look at rings and Madison showed me what she liked. I bought the ring soon after &amp; held onto it in secret for a month and a half. My family was planning a trip to Florida in April, which Madison was joining us on, so I decided this would be a perfect opportunity to ask the question. I planned out every detail with my mom as she was an undercover agent for me on the trip. A few days after arriving in Florida, at a park in Sarasota, (which felt similar to the park we had our second-ever date at), I got down on one knee and asked Madison to marry me. She was so excited and shocked, she said “yes!” which was quickly followed by, “did you ask my parents??” Of course I answered yes. We celebrated the rest of the evening and week in Florida together as a newly engaged couple. Here we are now, so ecstatic to get married on April 24th!

Our Story

Engagement Photos

Downtown Grand Rapids &amp; Riverside Park

Proposal Photos

Sapphire Shores Park | Sarasota, Florida

Photos

We are so grateful &amp; honored to have these wonderful people in our lives who have poured into us for so long and will help make our big day so special.

Jason & Lori Moore

Douglas & Heidi Barba

Julia Payne

Jeffrey Spees

Isabel Moore

Colten Covington

Margo Budde

Nathan Barba

Maitri Patel

Tyler VanLoo

Jenna Burdick

Roman Wickham

Caitlin Christensen

Jacob Moore

Luke Gutbrod

Jonah Boraby

John & Amy Spees

Wedding Party

Q & A

The Best Western Plus Wayland Hotel offers a 10% discount to all guests who are booking a stay for a wedding at the Lumber Yard Event Center! Please be sure mention this when you call 269-397-1161 to book your room in order to receive the discount. This hotel is conveniently located only 3 minutes from the venue! For more information, visit the website linked below.

Best Western Plus Wayland Hotel

Travel

If you plan on making a weekend out of your travels, enjoy some of our favorite spots in Grand Rapids!

Enjoy a day at Frederik Meijer Gardens exploring the botanical gardens, art museum, and outdoor sculpture park. | We went here together on the day we officially started dating (08.28.22)!

Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park

Walk, run, bike, rollerblade, or simply sit and enjoy the view of the Grand River at this fantastic park. With wide paths, a disc golf course, and plenty of green space to relax and hang out, you'll want to make sure you stop by here on your trip to GR. | Kyle and I took some of our engagement pictures here, check them out in the "Photos" tab.

Riverside Park

Enjoy a full drink menu that includes craft beer, artisan spirits, handcrafted cocktails, wine, and cider at New Holland Brewing - The Knickerbocker. In addition to a wide selection of drinks, they have a diverse menu of food to choose from. | Get the "pizza pinwheels," a Madison &amp; Kyle favorite!

New Holland Brewing - Grand Rapids Brewpub (The Knickerbocker)

Spanning three floors, the Grand Rapids Public Museum has over 25,000 pieces ranging from fossils to classic cars. Here you can learn more about the culture of Michigan, history, science, and more! | Afterwards, walk the blue bridge, Madison lived west of the Bridge and Kyle lived east.

Grand Rapids Public Museum

With more than 1,000 animals, John Ball Zoo is a great place to visit with family and friends. In addition to seeing the animals, you can also engage in other exciting activities such as ziplining! | Our favorite animals at John Ball are the flamingos (M) and the monkeys (K).

John Ball Zoo

The Downtown Market is a food destination home to 18+ food vendors and a beautiful greenhouse upstairs. Checkout the website for the specific options, truly a one stop shop for everyone. | The chicken salad sandwich from Juju Bird is one of our favs.

Grand Rapids Downtown Market

Located only 15 minutes from the Best Western Plus Wayland Hotel, enjoy the Tanger Outlets! With 75+ designer discount stores and several restaurants/breweries, there is something for everyone. Send me a "shopping haul video" afterwards of what you got (;

Kyle + Madison