Belhurst Castle and Winery

Wedding Day

Wedding

Reception

Our Wedding

10 YEARS AND COUNTING

Our story begins in the Fall of 2009 in the hills of western New York in Alfred's one-stoplight town. As I exited the dorm bathroom after a shower, Bridesmaid Cady Spencer ran down the hallway with another tennis player. Cady, who I had met the first day at Alfred, stops and introduces Melissa to me. Melissa says, “Hi, Cady we are late; let’s go.” &nbsp;Fast forward to the following summer, after a few texting conversations that went nowhere and after what I’m guessing is the “awe of meeting me only wearing a towel” wore off, I get a notification from Facebook saying Melissa Boyer wrote on my wall. The post read, “heyy!!!! how’s your summer going so far?” I promptly responded with, “Ok, I start work this week. how’s yours?” &hellip;&hellip;. that was the last I heard from Melissa that summer.

Preamble

Jump ahead to the week before classes start in the Fall of 2010. I am helping the freshmen get acclimated to college life as an orientation guide, and all of a sudden, a black SUV pulls up. Melissa hops out of the car, runs over to me without saying a word, hugs me, and races back to the car and drives off! Later that day, we started texting and hanging out. A month goes by with me texting and waiting, on average, about 6 hours for a response from Melissa, but despite all of that, our story continues.&nbsp; It is now November of 2010, and we are walking back together from the late-night cafeteria at Alfred called Lil’ Alf. This,&nbsp;in Melissa’s eyes, is the moment she asked herself out! Stupid me, I thought we had been dating for two months already -- but I have been told that marriage is about compromise, so we comprised that I was wrong and Melissa asked herself out on the dark path while I was gnawing on some chicken tenders! Neither of us can remember the date of that night, so we picked November 15th as our anniversary.

Chapter 1

We move on into our junior year, which brought on a lot of change. During our second semester, Melissa decided she would hone her sculpting skills studying abroad at SACI in Florence, Italy, and I fled from my engineering classes to a Co-op in California. With a nine-hour time difference and a busy schedule, this distance tested our relationship for the months we were apart. Then Senior year came around with me living in a house (that would have been condemned if it wasn’t in a college town) and Melissa living in the posh apartments above Fox’s pizza. Senior year for both of us was busy. Melissa was building huge ceramic sculptures preparing for her senior art show and spent most of her “spare time” in the studio. I was taking 20 credits of high-level engineering courses, so my “spare time” was spent in the engineering study building or fabrication shop. Senior year, a lot of our interactions were usually while we were multitasking – either meeting for a quick bite, or going grocery shopping together. Frequently our dates were in Melissa’s studio space, eating out of Tupperware! Finally, graduation came -- we laughed, we cried, we both walked across the stage.

Chapter 2

After graduation, Melissa moved back to Detroit, and I moved to Iowa for a summer internship. Melissa and I have had our disagreements on where we want to live, but we have both agreed it is not Iowa! After a quick two and a half months living in a Best Western, I moved back to Alfred to finish school. This semester was odd since most of my friends had graduated, but throughout, Melissa and friends came to visit. As I was finishing my “liberal arts semester,” Melissa was in Michigan teaching ceramics, working with an artist, and pursuing her passion to help adults with disabilities express themselves through art.

Chapter 3

&nbsp;After I truly graduated in December, I was headed out to Fresno, California, to start my career with CertainTeed. The next year was more long distance for us, but this time with only a 3-hour time difference! We made trips to see one another about once every three months, and finally, after a year of pleading, I convinced Melissa to move to California with me. So late in February of 2015, we moved into our first apartment together! The next year brought a lot of weekend trips to Yosemite and exploring around California. To start 2016, we decided to rescue a dog named Arlo&hellip;.. and our lives have never been the same!

Chapter 4

For our 6-year anniversary, we traveled to Monterey Bay for a romantic weekend. On the first night, as we walked along the beach with the sun setting behind us, I asked Melissa if she would marry me. She said yes, of course, or you would not be reading this! As I tried to slip the ring on her finger, I warned her that it might not fit, and we could get it resized. I was struggling, and Melissa promptly chimed in with “just shove it on!!” So I did---- and later that night as we celebrated in an Italian restaurant, the host assisted us in getting some olive oil to help remove the ring from Melissa’s now swollen finger!

Chapter 5

Later that year, Melissa was accepted into Notre Dame de Namur University for her Master’s degree in Art Therapy. In 2017 her classes began as well as her commute from Fresno to the Bay Area. A 3-hour drive with no traffic--- but there is never no traffic! This commute went on for three semesters until I found a new job in San Jose – now her commute is only 15 miles, that’s only an hour in Bay Area traffic!!

Chapter 6

Now we are in 2020. This is where we thought this story would end as we start a new chapter with our wedding in the fall. However, COVID-19 hit creating an obstacle full of risks, uncertainty, and unknowns. With this in mind, we have decided to move our wedding date to September 5, 2021, and hope that you will all be able to join us and be a part of our next chapter! 

September 5, 2021. &nbsp;Belhurst Castle. &nbsp;Geneva, New York

 











A Decade of Love, and a Lifetime to Go!

Epilogue

Health & Saftey

COVID-19

While things appear&nbsp;to be improving, our top priority continues to be the health and safety of all our guests attending the wedding. We kindly&nbsp;ask that if you have not been fully vaccinated that you &nbsp;wear a mask during our event.&nbsp;We are truly looking forward to having an amazing time celebrating with our family and friends while keeping everyone safe!&nbsp;Masks will be available on site for your convenience.&nbsp;See you all in September!!

Saturday Pre-Wedding Celebration

Please join us for an afternoon of good company and celebration! We have rented a pavilion in Seneca Lake Park for the afternoon to hang out, play yard games, and start off the weekend festivities. Snacks and a variety of beverages will be provided. This is going to be a laid back event so please feel free to come and go as you please. Can't wait to see you there!! The address is: 1 Lakefront Drive Geneva, NY 14456Our Pavilion is Lakeside #002 or "Shelter 2"

Saturday Pre-Wedding Celebration (Saturday September 4, 2021)

Please join us for an afternoon of good company and celebration! We have rented a pavilion in Seneca Lake Park for the afternoon to hang out, play yard games, and start off the weekend festivities. Snacks and a variety of beverages will be provided. This is going to be a laid back event so please feel free to come and go as you please. Can't wait to see you there!!There is a fee of $8 per car to enter the park. 







The address is:
 1 Lakefront Drive
Geneva, NY 14456
 Our Pavilion is Lakeside #002 or "Shelter 2"

Shuttle Information

Shuttles will be picking up and dropping off&nbsp;from the following locations: 
Ramada Hotel, Hampton Inn, and&nbsp;
Fairfield Inn The Shuttles will be running from 2:30 pm&nbsp;- 3:45 pm&nbsp;from these hotels to Belhurst Castle to arrive for our 4:00 pm Wedding Ceremony! The shuttles will also run from 8:30 PM - 11:00 PM&nbsp;

Our Story

Details

Photos

Frankie Mannino

Katie Boyer

Andy Thistle

Cady Spencer

Trenton Berardi

Mike Hildreth

Andy Boyer

Wedding Party

Registry

Q + A

There are limited rooms available at Belhurst Castle. If interested, you can call to reserve a room at either the Vinifera Inn or the Castle Chambers. We have no rooms blocked, but it is a beautiful location and the wedding is on site.

Shuttles will be picking up and dropping off&nbsp;from the following locations: Ramada Hotel Hampton Inn Fairfield InnThe Shuttles will be running from 2:30 pm&nbsp;- 3:45 pm&nbsp;from these hotels to Belhurst Castle to arrive for our 4:00 pm Wedding Ceremony!The shuttles will also run from 8:30 PM - 11:00 PM from Belhurst Castle back to your hotels.

Wedding Day Shuttle Information

This hotel is located in Geneva -- not the downtown area. It is a seven minute drive to Belhurst, and a five minute drive to both the Hampton Inn and Ramada. We have rooms reserved in a wedding block under Boyer/Thistle Wedding. Please call the hotel directly to make your reservation. The wedding shuttle will pick up and drop off at this location!

Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott Geneva Finger Lakes

Rochester airport located 1 hr from Belhurst&nbsp;

Greater Rochester International Airport

Buffalo airport located 1&nbsp;hr 45 mins from Belhurst&nbsp;

Buffalo Niagara International Airport

This hotel is located near the Ramada hotel and is walking distance to downtown Geneva. We have rooms reserved in a wedding block under Boyer/Thistle Wedding. Please call the hotel directly to make your reservation. The wedding shuttle will pickup and drop off at this location!

Hampton Inn Geneva

This hotel is located on the lake, walking distance to downtown Geneva and the Hampton Inn. We have no rooms blocked, however, they start accepting reservations 1 year in advance. The wedding shuttle will pickup and drop off at this location!

Ramada Plaza by Wyndham Geneva Lakefront Resort

Travel

Saturday Pre-Wedding Celebration

Please join us for an afternoon of good company and celebration! We have rented a pavilion in Seneca Lake Park for the afternoon to hang out, play yard games, and start off the weekend festivities. Snacks and a variety of beverages will be provided. This is going to be a laid back event so please feel free to come and go as you please. Can't wait to see you there!! The address is: 1 Lakefront Drive Geneva, NY 14456 Our Pavilion is Lakeside #002 or "Shelter 2"

Seneca Lake Park Pavilion

There are so many fantastic wineries in the area starting here in Geneva all the way down &nbsp;to Watkins Glen! Whether you're into wine, or just in for some beautiful views, The Seneca Lake Wine Trail is a fun resource to check out!!Please note that masks may still be required at certain locations, and a majority of the wineries in the area strongly suggest making a reservation before heading in for a tasting.

Seneca Lake Wine Trail

If wine isn't your thing there are also some great breweries in the area! Here are a few to check out if you're interested:

<a href="https://bottomlessbrewing.com">Bottomless Brewing</a>

<a href="https://www.twistedrailbrewing.com">Twisted Rail Brewing</a>

<a href="http://lakedrumbrewing.com">Lake Drum Brewing</a>

<a href="https://www.warhorsebrewing.com">War Horse Brewing Company</a>

<a href="https://www.webebrewing.com">WeBe Brewing Company</a>

<a href="https://www.breweryardennes.com">Brewery Ardennes</a>

<a href="https://www.bigalicebrewing.com">Big aLICe Brewing</a>

<a href="https://empireciderco.com">Empire Cider Company</a>

Breweries

This is an interesting activity located about 15 minutes away from your hotels. Enjoy the experience of rail biking along the 5 mile track surrounded by beautiful rolling hills, wildlife, and a great view of Keuka Lake. It is a guided tour with narration about the area. If you were looking for something a little different to do while you're in town, this may be for you!&nbsp;

Finger Lakes Rail Riders

Enjoy a guided tour or rent a kayak/paddleboard by the hour and explore Seneca Lake up close!&nbsp;

Seneca Lake Kayak

For more information on things to do in the area stop by the Finger Lakes Welcome Center or take a look at their website!

Melissa & Brian

Melissa & Brian