We now have a full gallery of images from Erika and Michael's beautiful wedding on our website. Please take a look and share in the joy of their special day.
You may view the gallery here.
Erika's Wedding Pink Experience
Erika, the recipient of The Wedding Pink 2014 (photo by Van Buren Photography & M Photography)
It’s early July and I am still floating on air from our wedding that took place on May 15 of this year. As I sit here, I reflect on memories of the day and events surrounding it with an ear-to-ear grin. In one word, it was “perfection”.
To think that a year ago I had no idea what The Wedding Pink was or who any of the beautiful people that swept so gallantly into my life to give it to me were. I was engaged to a wonderful man, and I had short hair and a new outlook on life thanks to my cancer battle that had taken place the year before. My fiancé Mike, who is from New Zealand, and I did not have the slightest clue as to how to pull off our dream wedding in the wake of my illness and the tumult that accompanies it. We were shelling out almost $800 a month for my health insurance and just trying to get our feet on the ground after a big move from NYC to the Midwest.
We knew that above all, we wanted to bring our families together. Between the both of us, we have family members on three continents, spanning multiple countries. How many opportunities, we asked ourselves, would there be to bring everyone together like this over our lifetimes? Not many. But when it came down to it, we could not piece together a proper celebration with the budget we had and the energy we lacked. It became a source of stress and difficulty for us. We were so excited to get married, but completely lacked the resources to accomplish the task.
Enter: The Wedding Pink. I was at camp with First Descents (another brilliant cancer organization that does adventure trips for young adult survivors) when one of my camp-mates asked me about my engagement and if I had plans for a wedding yet. “Don’t ask!” I said jokingly, explaining the situation. She asked me if I had ever heard of The Wedding Pink and told me a fellow breast cancer survivor friend of hers had won it last year. We jumped on the computer to check the submission date for the next wedding and it happened to be the week after we returned from camp.
From that moment on, everything felt serendipitous. I submitted our story, with its twists and turns and genuine hope that we would be called for an interview. And we were. When we were told that we had won the wedding, I distinctly recall Mike and I hanging up the phone, looking at each other with the widest eyes, falling and laughing on the couch for about 20 minutes straight. “WHAT!! THIS IS AMAZING!!” we could not stop saying. It was.
Meeting Cheryl Ungar, the survivor that founded The Wedding Pink, was like meeting an old friend. Cheryl’s heart and soul soar with her work on this wedding giveaway and she does it out of the absolute kindness of her own heart. There is no reward for her except in bringing joy to others and it is a very special person that can offer that to others so selflessly.
Her entire team of vendors is of that same ilk. People often assumed when I told them I won a wedding that I had to just fall in line with whatever was decided for me. This could not be farther from the truth. When I met with Ann Marlin of Cloud 9 Weddings and her fabulous team, we were immediately assured that everyone participating in this wanted to give us OUR dream wedding – not a cookie-cutter version of things they decided for us. They asked us our style, got a sense of our personalities, figured out what our likes and dislikes were and did nothing without asking us twice before making decisions.
The day was, as I said, perfect. We were married at Crooked Willow Farms, an absolutely stunning location south of Denver. I described it to people as a country chic, which was just excellent for Mike and myself: a little bit rustic, but absolutely upscale and gorgeous.
When I walked down the aisle to see my future husband standing there and looked around the room at all of the people that had made the journey to Colorado from literally all over the world, my heart swelled. This was not just about our union, but it was so much more. It was a celebration of life, of love, of family and friends. It was an excuse to have a full day of utter bliss and happiness with no worries. For a cancer survivor, that is the greatest gift.
The Wedding Pink is the most remarkable cancer organization I have known, in the sense that it offers something truly unique – it has been said to be a silver lining after a dark cloud and that could not be truer. Winning the wedding in my post-cancer haze could not have offered a better point of focus for me, a point of happy distraction and an opportunity to look FORWARD to something wonderful, rather than dwelling consistently on what had passed.
We will always look back on the day with fondness and full hearts. There has been no greater gift to us, besides our health and happiness, that has come our way. The Wedding Pink and the team of vendors behind it are truly, truly special.
Erika + Mike's Wedding Video
A huge thank you to All Digital Photo & Video for the beautiful video they produced from Erika and Mike's wedding.
My Lovely Pink Family
I want to take a moment to express my gratitude towards my Pink Family which is comprised of the past Wedding Pink couples.
Not only are they awarded a dream wedding but afterwards they join our family and help with future weddings. Every family member represents strength, courage and hope in dealing with breast cancer.
We intend for this special family to grow and give back to the community every year.
Mike & Erika (2014), Cheryl Ungar (founder of The Wedding Pink), Melissa (2011) and Erin & Ben (2013)
Alice's Gift
We had a huge surprise for Erika at her wedding. She was gifted this stunning Todd Reed necklace made of yellow gold, raw diamond cubes and brilliant cut diamonds.
There is a beautiful story behind this. Kelly Karli of Frosted Pink Weddings donated her wedding planning services to The Wedding Pink 2012 and one of her clients read about it on her blog. The mother-of-the bride proceeded to make a private donation to The Wedding Pink in honor of Kelly's grandmother, Alice, who passed away from breast cancer many years ago. Alice was very dear to Kelly and her inspiration in founding her wedding planning company.
Kelly joined us at this year's wedding and presented the necklace to Erika. Our hope is that Erika wears this necklace in good health remembering this special day and all of the family and friends that surrounded her and Mike with love.
Additionally, a very sincere thank you to Todd Redd Jewelry for making this possible.
Erika and Michael's Wedding Photos - Part 3
Erika and Michael's beautiful day at Crooked Willow Farms.
Photos by Van Buren Photography, M Photography and Cheryl Ungar.
The Wedding Pink is made possible through the generosity of the vendors, individual donors and corporate sponsors. If you would like to pay it forward for next year's couple to have a similar wedding of their dreams, you may make a donation here. We are a 501(c)3 charitable organization and your contribution is tax deductible.
Erika and Michael's Wedding Photos - Part 2
Our lovely couple!
Photos by Van Buren Photography and M Photography
The Wedding Pink is made possible through the generosity of the vendors, individual donors and corporate sponsors. If you would like to pay it forward for next year's couple to have a similar wedding of their dreams, you may make a donation here. We are a 501(c)3 charitable organization and your contribution is tax deductible.
Erika and Michael's Wedding Photos - Part 1
We all had such a great time at Erika and Michael's wedding and we were honored to be part of it. There are so many great photos and we are still editing through thousands of images. Here is the first of several blog posts of photos. We hope to have the rest up by the end of today and a full gallery of photographs in a few weeks.
Enjoy!
Photos by Van Buren Photography, M Photography and Cheryl Ungar Wedding Photography
The Wedding Pink is made possible through the generosity of the vendors, individual donors and corporate sponsors. If you would like to pay it forward for next year's couple to have a similar wedding of their dreams, you may make a donation here. We are a 501(c)3 charitable organization and your contribution is tax deductible.
Introducing Mr. and Mrs. Camplin
Wow, what an amazing evening we had last night. More pics soon!
Photos by Katie of Van Buren Photography and Emily of M Photography.
Erika and Michael's Big Day is Tomorrow
We are all so excited making Erika and Michael's wedding dreams come true tomorrow. Stay tuned to the blog and our facebook page for updates throughout the day.
Meanwhile, Erika and Michael joined me this morning for a little interview on Channel 9's Colorado and Company.
Happy Anniversary Erin & Ben!
Today marks the first anniversary of the 3rd annual Wedding Pink. We would like to wish the lovely Erin and Ben a happy happy anniversary!
New Website
We hit the refresh button on our website. We hope you like it!
Our Amazing Vendors
With this year's Wedding Pink being a little over 3 weeks away I wanted to take a moment to thank all of the vendors who are generously donating their products and services to make Erika and Michael's wedding dreams come true.
A huge thank you to the following vendors:
Erin Ferris Hair
Robin Flanagan Makeup
Men's Wearhouse - Park Meadows
Melissa and Jeff Celebrate 3 Years
Tomorrow, April 17, marks the 3rd wedding anniversary for Melissa and Jeff, our very first Wedding Pink couple. Much has changed since that joyous day in downtown Denver. Last Autumn they welcomed a beautiful baby boy into the world. Furthermore, Melissa continues to remain healthy and cancer free.
Over the last 3 years The Wedding Pink has also grown as next month we will help Erika and Michael celebrate their special day. This marks the 4th annual Wedding Pink.
All of this brings much happiness and joy to me! It is a dream come true to be able to offer a silver lining to these young couples after they have struggled with such a horrific disease.
Melissa, Jeff and Fenn
Our Handsome Groom
We believe in equal rights here at The Wedding Pink. It is always delightful to show the bride trying on wedding dresses and it is just as much fun to show the groom at his tux fitting.
Recently I joined Mike at the Men's Wearhouse in Park Meadows mall and for those of you who do not know, Men's Wearhouse is donating Mike's tux.
So without further ado...
In case you are wondering Mike will be sporting a slightly different look at the wedding!
Veil & Vow Huge Success
We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to the Brown Palace Hotel for the Veil & Vow Luxury Wedding Showcase this past weekend. All of the proceeds are benefiting The Wedding Pink and we are grateful for their support. We would also like to mention that the Bridal Collection held a sample dress sale at the show and 15% of the dress sales are being donated to The Wedding Pink.
Thank you again to the sponsors, vendors and attendees of the show. It was fabulous!
Michelle of the Brown Palace Giving Away Prizes
Erika & Mike, Wedding Pink 2014 Bride & Groom
The Bridal Collection Sample Dress Sale
Wedding Invitations
I have to take a moment to share Erika and Mike's wedding invitation. It turned out so perfect and captures the flavor of their upcoming wedding (which is hard to believe that it is less than 2 months away!).
Erika and Mike had the pleasure of working with the multi-talented Ann Marlin of Cloud 9 Weddings & Papers. Ann not only graciously donated the invitations but is also is the lead wedding planner for The Wedding Pink 2014 and 2015. We are very fortunate to have her on board.
Veil and Vow Wedding Showcase, March 22 at the Brown Palace
This March, The Brown Palace Hotel and Spa will host its first ever “Veil & Vow” event to benefit The Wedding Pink. The luxury wedding showcase will take place from 1-4pm on Saturday, March 22nd and feature the city’s best planners, designers, event professionals and bridal boutiques.
The day of inspiration will include gourmet offerings from the Chefs at The Brown Palace, free-flowing bubbly from Moet, advice from wedding professionals, from designing the big day to finding the perfect gown, and way for brides-to-be to pay it forward. One hundred percent of the $10 admission fee and a portion of all dresses purchased that day will be donated to The Wedding Pink, a generous organization that helps deserving couples recently touched by breast cancer, to receive the wedding of their dreams.
Celebrated for its elegant sense of tradition and modern luxury, The Brown Palace has been one of the most sought-after venues for ceremonies, wedding receptions and special occasions since its inception in 1892. As a backdrop for more than 4,000 weddings in its time, the regal and warm atmosphere of the iconic Denver landmark continues to attract brides, grooms and families as they celebrate milestone occasions.
“Weddings are such a special life event and our hotel has been lucky enough to share in so many of those memorable moments over the years,” explained Mark Shine of The Brown Palace. “These celebrations symbolize a lifetime of love and we can’t think of a better partner to celebrate that with than The Wedding Pink,” Mark continued.
In addition to the generous ways The Brown Palace will be supporting the organization at the Veil & Vow showcase, the hotel will also host The Wedding Pink’s 5th annual wedding celebration on May 15th, 2015 for the couple selected this year.
The event does have limited availability and is open to the public on a first-come, first-serve basis. To register and attend, please visit: http://www.brownpalace.com/weddingshowcase.
Fun Custom Hanger for Erika
A few weeks ago I had a surprise email show up in my inbox. Much to my delight it was from the Wedding Hanger Shop offering to donate a custom hanger for Erika's wedding dress.
It arrived the other day. Isn't this full of awesomeness? We can't wait to see Erika's dress hanging on this.
Custom Hanger from the Wedding Hanger Shop
The Wedding Pink 2015!
We are ecstatic to partner with the Brown Palace Hotel for our 5th annual Wedding Pink on 5/15/15!
Ann Marlin of Cloud 9 Weddings will be donating full wedding planning services and we will be assembling our stellar team of vendors over the next few months.
Please stay tuned to our blog and Facebook page for more vendor details as well as the dates for the submission period.
Brown Palace Hotel, Denver, CO, Host of The Wedding Pink 2015