Piper Palm House

Wedding Day

Wedding

The Schlafly Tap Room

Reception

Our Wedding

Our Wedding Hashtag

#BicycleBuiltFor2Christisons

Derek and Sarite met at the joint bachelor and bachelorette party of Sarite's friends Carlye and Justin Feeney. Sarite was a bridesmaid for Carlye, but Derek didn't even know Justin or Carlye and was invited to the party by Justin's groomsman, Chris Ferguson. When they were first introduced, they were in the Hyatt hotel in downtown St Louis. After having such a great time together at the party, they continued to see each other and Derek was Sarite's guest at Carlye and Justin's wedding. Their dating anniversary happens to be the same day as their wedding!

How We Met

In May 2015, Derek and Sarite went on a road trip to Montana to visit their friend Kyle Rohan. The first day of vacation was full of driving and they made it all the way to Hill City, South Dakota. Their plans for the next day were to see Mount Rushmore and go on a hike in the Black Hills. Unfortunately, it was raining that day, but Derek and Sarite did not let a little rain change their plans. They visited Mount Rushmore first and could barely see it because of the rain and fog. They walked up a bunch of stairs to get as close as they could so they could get a better glimpse. During this time, Sarite got soaked. She was wearing a wind-breaker that she thought was a raincoat, while Derek bought an expensive umbrella that he was so proud of because he didn't get as wet as Sarite. As a result, Sarite was drenched, cranky, and no longer wanted to go hiking. She expressed her feelings to Derek and said if they didn't go hiking they could see Kyle sooner and not have to drive in the dark. Derek, however, was adamant about hiking and convinced Sarite that they should eat lunch, dry off, and see if the weather cleared up. While we ate, it stopped raining and the sun came out! Sarite was slightly disappointed, but agreed to go hiking. She had no idea Derek was so interested in hiking. As it turned out, Derek had an ulterior motive. Both Sarite and Derek ended up having a really fun hike with an even better ending. When they reached the end of the trail, Sarite started to turn around and head back, but then noticed Derek was searching for something in his backpack. Wondering what he was doing, Sarite came back over to him and he got down on one knee. He pulled out a ring and asked Sarite to marry him. She was extremely surprised and happy. She even lifted him up in a big hug!

The Proposal

Our Story

Details

Dane is my younger brother. Although he is younger he is just 18 months younger so I sadly don't have any first hand stories of what it was like the first time I saw him. I have been told I was quite the jealous big brother and did not appreciate the new baby taking all Mom's attention. At one point I even decided to push Dane down a flight of stairs while he was learning to walk. He obviously survived and thankfully without any noticeable injuries other than a small scar on his head where no hair grows anymore. Dane and I quickly became each others first best friends. We were inseparable in everything that we did. If you know us both well you'll know that we have very similar yet very different personalities. One of these differences is that Dane was, like we both like to say, "fearless to the point of stupidity". I would always have Dane try out the next stupid thing young boys do first while I stood close by and watched. After all these years I've decided to switch rolls and let him watch me jump into the next new thing called marriage. I couldn't imagine any other person to be the first one standing by my side.

Dane Christison

 Rachel is my older sister. I don't have a cool story about how we met since I don't remember that, but I do have cool stories about when we were little kids. Rachel was always the one to decide what we would play and she usually chose to play "school". She would be the teacher and I would be the student. That all sounded like fun and games until I realized that she created actual work that she expected me to do! I protested, but in the end I'd complete the booklet she put together. That's how I learned about Greek mythology. To this day she still teaches me so much about everything, including how to be a great sister and friend. And that is why I'm so happy that she is my maid of honor!

Rachel Brown

Chris and I met at college. We went to school at Missouri S&amp;T where we were both engineering students. We both decided to join the Steel Bridge Team where we made a 1:10 scale bridge out of steel. The students on the team were tasked with building a bridge and taking it to competition where we would assemble the pieces for speed and then load test the bridge. Chris and I quickly advanced to leadership roles on the team with Chris being the President and me being the Lead Designer/Vice President in our last years at school. Chris and quickly began hanging out at more than just Steel Bridge functions and our friendship developed. Chris and I were big believers in the "work hard, play hard" moto and have many fond memories and great stories of both Steel Bridge and late night shenanigans. The shenanigans continued beyond graduation and actually led to me meeting Sarite. So one could say that without the friendship Chris and I have this day would not be happening. 

Chris Ferguson

Becca and I have been friends since middle school and all through high school we were best friends. We were in orchestra and student council together and took many of the same classes together. The last semester of high school we had every single class together. Although we get to see each other much less than we did back then, we are still great friends and I couldn't imagine getting married without Becca being part of my wedding. 

Rebecca Bubenheim

Kyle and I met while we were participating in our favorite activity, bicycling! Once I graduated school I found a job and moved to St. Charles. After a while and many accidental bike paths crossings we became friends. Kyle is also an engineer. With a mutual fondness of bicycles and engineering we became good friends. 

Kyle Rohan

Audrey is a bicyclist on the same racing team as me. She is my riding buddy and has become a great friend in the past year. She is also good friends with Derek, so the three of us like to ride bikes together and hang out all the time. When Derek and I are making weekend plans, she is the first one we call! Since Audrey means so much to both of us, it is really special having her in our wedding party. 

Audrey Miller

Nick is also another cycling buddy that our friendship grew beyond the bike. I believe the first day I met Nick was at Kyle's apartment at a dinner party. Bikes, hangouts, and friendship ensued from there. While Nick and I both share a love of cycling and as some of you may know he is my cycling coach, we will both tell you we are friends before cycling contacts. 

Nick Grigsby 

Emily is my best friend from Truman. She played viola in the President's String Quartet and in the orchestra with me. When we were stuck in Kirksville with nothing to do, we made life interesting for each other. We did everything together and lived across the hall from each other for her last semester at Truman. We also traveled Europe together. She knew me before I met Derek, when I met Derek, and now that Derek and I are together. She knows everything about me and still likes me, so I'm very happy that she is in my wedding. 

Emily Koboldt

Denae is Derek's younger sister and my future sister-in-law. She is such a sweetheart and I can't wait to get to know her better and better through the years. I'm thrilled that she is one of my bridesmaids and even more thrilled that she is part of my new family!

Denae Christison

Kyle aka KJ was a friend of Chris's at Missouri S&amp;T. After developing a friendship with Chris, KJ and I also developed a friendship. We currently live close to each other and hang out on a regular basis to this day. KJ has taken up the new hobby of beer brewing and I have taken up the hobby of tasting his beer. 

Kyle (KJ) Jamison

Karl is another friend from Missouri S&amp;T. We meet while playing IM sports together for the christian campus fellow ship group. Karl developed a liking of cycling, although he is a triathlete :P, and we began to ride with each other as well. Karl and I have been on many athletic teams together from school and outside of school. The picture below is from a Warrior Dash run we did together that ended in a large mud puddle/small mud pond. 

Karl Hansen

Anna is marrying my brother, Jesse! I am so happy for the two of them and excited to have Anna as part of my family. She brings laughter with her wherever she goes, so I'm glad that she will be part of Derek's and my wedding!

Anna Pheiffer

Wedding Party

Photos

Q + A

Registry

Travel

This is a beautiful garden almost across the street from the park where the wedding ceremony will take place. Hopefully the weather will be nice and this will be a great way to spend your time in between the ceremony and reception.

Missouri Botanical Garden

There are plenty of beautiful things to see in the park where the wedding ceremony will be!

Tower Grove Park

You could go over to the reception site early and get a head start on beer sampling at the bar on the first floor! They also offer tours of their brewery. Then you will be ready to head upstairs at 7.

You can take a tour of the brewery in between the ceremony and reception.

Anheuser-Busch

The zoo is free and super awesome. I suggest looking at the penguins because it will most likely be very hot mid-July.

Saint Louis Zoo

You can go up in this iconic Saint Louis structure or just look at it from the park beneath it.

The Gateway Arch

There is no other museum in the world like this one. It is more like a giant playground for adults too.

City Museum

You can travel through the beautiful Forest Park on a paddleboat! You might even see the wedding party having pictures taken!

Boathouse Forest Park

You can learn about St. Louis and Missouri history and then quiz other guests at the reception. This is another free attraction!

Missouri History Museum

This is located in Forest Park near the zoo and history museum, so you could hit up all three free attractions in one day!

Saint Louis Art Museum

It's free and you can learn about science! It's right across the highway from Forest Park.

Sarite & Derek

Sarite & Derek

Registry