Simone Badshah is Shakira's older sister, and her built in BFF. Chris and Shakira often jokingly say that they want to be like Simone when they grow up, as Simone is one of the most thoughtful, well-traveled, and sophisticated ladies you will come across (ok maybe not jokingly, we all want to be like Simone). Simone left the Tri-State area to live in the DC area during her time at American University, but much to the joy of her family, she moved to Astoria, Queens, NY post-grad and has been close to home ever since. Simone is a brilliant, beautiful, and hilarious person, and the sisterhood she shares with Shakira is something Shakira knows she is truly blessed to have.

Ryan Dobbs is the closest thing that Chris has to a brother, and his former college and post-grad roommate of several years. Chris met Dobbs at the Rutgers University School of Engineering (Go Knights) new student orientation event in the summer of 2012, and, much to the chagrin of the Walczyk family phone bill, they have talked nearly every day since then. Dobbs forced Chris to join the Rutgers Rugby Team during Freshman year, and introduced him to lifelong friends in the process. A fellow engineer, Dobbs' brilliant mind is only outshined by his ferocious competitiveness, his fierce loyalty to his friends, and his concerning addiction to the song I Think I'm OKAY by Machine Gun Kelly ft. Yungblud & Travis Barker. You can likely catch Dobbs on a couch watching football with Chris on any given Sunday.

Alex DeGregorio is Shakira's best friend from Basking Ridge, NJ, and these two ladies have been nearly inseparable for over 15 years. Alex will be the first to tell you that she introduced Shakira and Chris to each other (we will set the over/under betting lines on how many times she mentions this during her speech at the Welcome Dinner), and her friendship with both the Bride and the Groom is something they value immensely. Alex and Shakira text each other almost exclusively in capital letters, as everything they talk about with each other is always very important to them. Shakira and Chris both consider Alex to be like family, and while Alex may love the Yankees and Hayley Williams - the lead singer of Paramore - more than the Bride and Groom, they know she will always be a substantial part of their lives.

Keith Wallace was the first person Chris met at Rutgers University, and the two of them have been on an abundance of trips over the last decade. A fellow Rutgers Engineer, Keith is incredibly gifted and has had tremendous success stemming from his drive to know how things work. Keith was a member of the Rutgers University baseball team, but quickly realized he would have more fun playing on the Rutgers Rugby team and made the switch to the good side. Over the years, Keith and Chris have bonded over their love (and often times hatred) of Philadelphia sports teams, and the two of them love getting together to watch Scott Hansen present RedZone every football Sunday.

Emily Walczyk is without a doubt Chris' favorite sibling. While Chris may have a decent amount of intelligence in his own right (he's a PE after all!), Emily can absolutely lap him in a race of smarts. By the time that the wedding is starting, Emily will have skied nearly every mountain in Colorado and Utah (Queen of the Mountains!), possibly lived in her fifth state in the continental US (Miss Worldwide!), and completed her third collegiate degree (Dork!). Emily is as cool, beautiful, smart, and funny as you can be, and every moment Chris and Shakira spend with her when she's back in Jersey is the best part of the year.

Emily Burd is one of Chris' oldest and dearest friends from back home in scenic Chatham, NJ. Emily and Chris spent most of their free time outside of high school together and remained close friends even though they rarely had classes overlap (shoutout Freshman year Earth Science). Emily is always the first person Chris calls to talk about recent life events, or any gossip going on around Chatham. An Indiana University grad, Emily is based in Indianapolis right now, and maybe someday she will finally convince Chris to fly in and attend the Indy 500 to party in the Snakepit.

Eryn Brogan is a terrific friend, and one of Shakira's favorite party people. Eryn and Shakira met during their humble beginnings as childcare workers at Bright Horizons, where they bonded over their love for kids, their future plans, and their frustration with certain coworkers (shoutout Cheryl). Eryn is the type of person you love to have around you whenever you can, and her loyalty to her friends is one of her greatest qualities. Shakira and Eryn love to experiment with different types of gin, making fun seasonal cocktails together whenever they can. Ask her about the Joys of Homeownership, and try to convince her to keep the cool shag rug on the stairs in her new house.

Danny Miller is the quintessential hype man and fun guy to be around in the group. Another Rutgers Engineer (there will be several attending the wedding!) and the only other civil engineer in the wedding party, Dan has been one of Chris' favorite people to hang with since they met Freshman year. Also a member of the Rutgers Rugby team, you will likely not find anyone more adept at more sports and activities than Dan. Truly the definition of not having enough hours in the day, Dan somehow always finds time for his friends, even with work, co-parenting Luka the dog, sports recreation leagues, fantasy sports research, video/content creation, and World of Warcraft raids all loading up his schedule. Everyone knows the party is better when Danny Miller is there!

Kerryn Lum is one of Shakira's closest friends from Basking Ridge, NJ, and her former roommate of two years. Kerryn is an amazing friend, a tremendous chef, and a wonderful dog mother (Shoutout Wicket & Pudge the dawgs). When Kerryn asked Shakira if she could get a dog for their apartment, Shakira did not realize just how great of an experience dog ownership could be, and loved their time raising young Wicket. Kerryn is Shakira's favorite person to watch scary movies with, even though Shakira requests for Kerryn to tell her all the scary parts in advance so that she's not too spooked. Kerryn knows that she will always be on speed dial for Chris and Shakira when they inevitably need a nurse and dog mother's opinion on things.

Brian "BL" Levine is a constant source of energy and good vibes any time you get around him. BL and Chris have talked nearly every day since 2015, mostly about football, and BL's wit has been the source of much of the group's laughter over the years (also ask him to show you the dancing video from St. Louis). BL will always be the first to ask you about life events and will always celebrate your successes as if they were his own, as he is a genuine person and friend. This is also a not-so-thinly veiled attempt to butter him up to make him more open to fantasy football trades with Chris - stay tuned to see how that works out.

Carolyn Dobbs is one of Shakira and Chris' closest friends, and one of the most genuine and thoughtful people you could ever meet. Carolyn was introduced to Shakira by Alex DeGregorio, meanwhile Chris already knew Carolyn as his roommate's girlfriend. Carolyn and Shakira often have lively conversations on the couch while their respective significant others frustratingly monitor their fantasy football teams. Carolyn has shown us what it really means to be a friend by being so remarkably kind to everyone around her. Carolyn is also one heck of an event hostess as well, with no one rivaling her skill at setting a charcuterie board or setting up a party for maximum fun.

Matthew "Silv" Silverman is one of the most brilliant guys you can ever meet, and as good of a friend as you can find. Silv, like BL, is one of Dobbs' friends from Berkeley Heights who Chris was lucky to meet and stay in touch with. Silv is another recipient of many of Chris' texts about football, and, on the semi-rare occasion you can track him down for a response, provides his friends with tremendous humor and insight. When he's not spending time with his wife Hilary and his French Bulldog (shoutout Daph) in Brooklyn, he is busy running complex algorithms in the financial world to help the rich get richer. Maybe one day he can explain to Chris what a "Bit Coin" is.

Dakota is one of Shakira's closest friends from Basking Ridge, NJ, and one of her favorite people to hit the town for a girls night out (or sleep on the floor and watch movies while waiting for Dakota to buy a couch). Dakota is as sweet as they come, and an incredibly talented singer as well (check her out on Spotify)! Whenever Shakira is in the mood to have a fun time, the first person she calls is Dakota, as she always has a bubbly personality and brings the positive vibes. Ask Dakota to show you pictures of her new dog Whiskey, he is an adorable little fella.

Conor O'Shea is one of the most trustworthy and loyal guys you can find, and the type of dude who truly values the people closest to him. As being the fiancé of Shakira's best friend Alex, Conor has been locked into hanging out with Chris for many an event that they have been dragged to (always willingly honey, I promise!). Fortunately for both Chris and Conor, the times they spend together when they are at these events have been a ton of fun, as both of them share an interest in football, technology, and the allure of an Excel spreadsheet with perfectly referenced macros. Conor is a true friend, and his role in government work provides peace of mind for everyone around him. Unfortunately, he responds to every request for information from Chris regarding where the government is keeping the files on aliens and UFOS with the same statement: "That's Classified."

Bianca is one of Shakira's closest friends from Basking Ridge, NJ, and Shakira's go-to person with any questions on #CityLife. Bianca has led one of the coolest lives of anyone in their post-grad era, living in some trendy and super fun spots in Manhattan before moving to Chicago for grad school. Whenever Shakira wants to know what the best and hottest new songs are, she simply asks Bianca to show her the most recent updates to Bianca's "Cabo Playlist" on Spotify. Bianca is a wonderful friend who is always excited to hear about how the people closest to her are doing, and her friends are just as eager to hear about her latest adventures and escapades in the cities.

Louis Bodine is one of Chris' closest friends, and a former roommate at Rutgers University. Louis is a former New Jersey high school state champion golfer and member of the Rutgers University golf team, and he has taken his talents to sunny Southern California to teach the rich and famous how to perfectly execute a flop shot onto the green. Louis provides immense value to his friend groups, as he is an incredibly funny and thoughtful guy, will give you golf pointers on a whim, and shares a love for sports with Chris and the fellas. Louis and Chris religiously fill out the daily NFL Immaculate Grids and love to talk ball whenever they can. Louis has a lot to be proud of, but few accomplishments trump beating Potter Gray in the 2016 Rutherford Intercollegiate Golf Tournament by 36 strokes!