Written By Melissa Reardon
Photographs By Lucy Cuneo
A transplant from Virginia, Weston “Wes” McAfee vividly remembers the first time he saw his future bride-to-be. Charleston native Dana Elaine...
Ok, people. Yes, you’re gonna love Jesse and Will’s wedding photos (al fresco reception in the Old Village? Yes, please!). But their proposal story? It might even beat the pretty out for best in show. Here’s the scoop: The two met at a party in town and got lost in an hours-long conversation over houses, antiques, and the like. Flash forward two years, and the two avid Historic Charleston Foundation volunteers were headed to The Aiken-Rhett House downtown for what Will assumed was just another typical, fun Saturday of exploring. When they got to the house museum, a favorite spot for the couple, they each picked up their headsets and MP3 players for the self-guided tour. Little did Will know Jesse had gotten a friend with, as he puts it, “an NPR voice” to record a special narrative. They were instructed by the recording to explore the grounds, then it led them inside to the double parlor, where the storyline switched to talk of them and their love of architecture, Charleston, and “How the Aiken Rhett house had been a backdrop to many special moments in its long history,” says Jesse. The narrator said that another very special moment was about to happen and told Will to walk to the fireplace mantel and pick up the blue box there. (Jesse had placed an engagement band there prior to their walkabout.) “Will took off his head phones,” says Jesse, “I knelt down on one knee and finally asked him to spend the rest of his life with me. And thank God—he said ‘Yes!’” Merriest of marriages to these two and thanks to Lauren Jonas for sharing their delightful day with all of us.
Images: Lauren Jonas | Venue: Old Village Post House Inn | Rugs: Local thrift stores and estate sales | Fig trees and orchids: Brownswood Nursery + Abide A While | Rentals: Ooh! Events | Cake: Sugar Bakeshop | Getaway car: Lowcountry Land Rover | Music: Coastal Chamber Musicians
