Liz is my younger sister and best friend. We were best playmates as little girls, shared the same friend group, played on the same sports teams, and attended UWL together. We find fun in anything we do from grocery shopping to going out. Liz is the best third wheel to Braden and I. Let’s be real, Braden is the third wheel when Liz is around. I could not imagine a better MOH than Liz.

Jeremy is one of my best friends. We started being friends around 8th grade, mainly through Xbox. Slowly through having similar classes + lunch time during high school and having the same friend group, Jeremy and I became close. We went to UW La Crosse together, and lived together for the 3 years that came after the dorms (he even lived with me for a bit after graduating). Jeremy is one of those people I can talk about anything and everything with, and we don’t get bored of each other. I am extremely lucky to have him in my life.

Elizabeth is Braden’s sister and my soon to be sister-in-law. I have been friends with Elizabeth for many years. We grew close in highschool through the dance team and being in the same friend group. Elizabeth attended Winona state University which is a short drive from La Crosse. This allowed Braden and I to spend time with her throughout college. Elizabeth has always been a sister to me and I am excited to make it official.

Isak is one of a kind. He was one of the first people I became close with after my sheltered childhood at St. Joes. To this day, he is the funniest person I have ever met. We spent many nights growing up driving around in my Station Wagon or his Toyota Corolla, with nothing better to do in little Menomonie. We spent a lot of time just saying, “Seriously, what do we do?? There is nothing to do”. Half the time he would just show up unannounced at my parents house and I would be forced to hop in the car, unsure of what we’d get up to that night. Even though Isak lives in California now, he’s one of those people who I can see and it's like no time has passed.

Marley was my baby cousin until Ed & Roz came along. Marley and I have always had a special bond, despite our seven year age gap. She is my “mini me” and referred to me as “My Tori” when she was little. I have many fond memories babysitting Marley and her brother in the summers, sleepovers in her parents' camper, and doing Marley’s hair every time we were together. I will always remember that Marley was very jealous of Braden in our early years of dating because he was taking me away from her. Marley is now a young adult and she and Braden are cool with each other.

Andrew is my little brother. I’m about 7.5 years older than him, but we’ve always been close. Growing up Andrew and I spent a lot of time outside together, pretending we were Jedi with plastic baseball bats, playing basketball, or killing bugs. He was always a hoot on family vacations. He’s loved ice cream since he was little, and is the only one in the family who can guzzle it without getting chubby. Recently, I’ve loved watching him play basketball and tennis (he’s the only athletic one in the family).

Megan and I have only known each other for a couple of years, but it feels like a lifetime. We met when we were both accepted into the Radiation Therapy program at UWL. Megan and I were placed at the same internship site, Gundersen La Crosse, for our second year in the program. We did not know each other very well, but decided we were going to live together for the thirteen month internship and the rest is history. Megan and I were together 24/7 and became best friends. We both knew we would be in each other's weddings one day. I was honored to be in her and Tyler’s wedding in July 2023 and am so happy for her to be in mine.

Jared (Jerry) was my neighbor growing up. Funnily enough, I was actually friends with his older brother Alex before I was friends with him. He’d come over all the time during summers to shoot hoops or play Star Wars. In High School we had the same friend group, and spent a ton of time with each other getting up to no good. We went to both Colorado and Washington with each other, and both those weeks were some of the best of my life. Overall Jerry is someone who’s always had a heart of gold and I cherish him as a friend.

Abigail and I met when we lived on the same floor of Hutchison hall freshman year of college. We shared similar majors, classes, and would help each other with homework and studying. She quickly became one of my very best friends. Abigail and I then lived together sophomore and junior years of college. Post college, we have made time to see each other and text every single day. Abigail is so much fun to be around, is incredibly peppy, always makes me laugh, and is my biggest hype woman! I knew that I had to have her as a bridesmaid.

Doug is Tori’s sister Liz’s boyfriend, but we’ve known each other a long time. Doug and I met when we both were stuck on the “B-Team'' in Basketball from 6th-8th grade. Our team was not good, but we made the best of it. I also distinctly remember Doug screaming, “Run Gingy Run!” when I got my only hit of the season in 8th grade baseball. I was lucky enough to live with Doug junior year of college, and that was one of the most fun years of my life. Every weekend we had a blast. We also spent a lot of time in the living room together watching ‘spooky movies’. Doug is one of the best men I know, and his morals have taught me a lot.

Ashlee was Liz and I ‘s best friend in highschool. We always referred to her as our third sister. I grew close to Ashlee from being on the cheerleading and dance team together. We were always having Cancun or Culver’s dates, going for drives, and hanging out at each other’s houses. Ashlee and I’s friendship is one where we can go months without talking and then pick up right where we left off. I could not imagine my big day without Ashlee there.

Graham was my roommate in the dorms as well as senior year. Graham and I got assigned to each other, not knowing anything about one another. It ended up working out perfectly because we both studied Computer Science, and we both needed all the help we could get. We spent so much time together doing projects in college. Our banter helped soften the pain of getting that degree. He got me into a lot of music I never would’ve listened to without him. I still enjoy a trip to the Twin Cities to go to shows with him to this day.

Bailey was a mutual friend to me at first. Honestly, he intimidated me a bit because I thought he was cooler than me. Slowly once I realized that we had a ton in common, we became friends. We both love talking TV, movies, and video games. Bailey taught me the saying, “Do what you wanna do”. To this day, if I feel stuck or like I'm making the wrong choice, that little jingle echoes in my head in his voice.

Jared is truly one of a kind. He moved to Menomonie around 8th grade, and we started being friends right away. At first I teased him, but once we started taking French class together I realized he was absolutely hilarious and we became great friends. The comradery we had in that class was unmatched, every hour there was a great time. His humor is one of a kind and I am blessed to have him in my life. Whenever I am in Menomonie, grabbing a drink (and seeing where the night takes you) with Jared is about the best way to spend the evening.

Ed and Roz are Tori’s twin cousins. My first job out of college was in the same city that the twins lived in. I was fortunate enough to spend so much time with Ed and Roz during that year. Every Thursday I would go over to my aunt and uncle’s house to spend time with the kids. I will cherish the time I had playing, reading, and snuggling with them. Braden and I would have the twins over at my apartment many weekends for sleepovers as well. When Braden and I got engaged we knew they needed to be our flower girl and ring bearer. When we asked them, they did not know what the job entailed. They were only four years old at the time. We had given them books on what a flower girl and ring bearer did at the wedding. After reading the books, Roz practiced throwing petals with ripped up paper and a basket. After Eddie read his book, he was very relieved to learn that there were no actual bears involved with being a ring bearer. However, he told his mom that he was still going to do the job because he didn’t want Tori to be sad. I could not imagine my big day without my sweet, little twins.