I’m looking at these photos, where Hannah is angelic in her long, brunette tresses and gorgeous gown, and Tripp is making people laugh with his ridiculous antics and unique comedic mind – yet the speeches are what continue to rise to the top of my memories from this emotional yet party-heavy wedding at Barnsley Gardens in Georgia.
So many people stood up for Hannah and Tripp at the rehearsal dinner, many sharing hilarious stories and anecdotes. But every single one centered on how this couple had inspired them to be better people. Tripp’s sister Melissa said something about her younger brother that really stood out to me. She said, “Tripp taught me how to love better.” And Hannah’s brother, known for being shy, took to the microphone to tell this room full of 80 people that Hannah had done the same for him, and was the one person who never gave up on him.
We didn’t know Hannah and Tripp before that night, but we went back to our hotel room feeling so lucky that we had been matched with such good, caring, selfless people. It was actually Hannah’s father, Reggie Joiner, who found us. Reggie, a Christian pastor who founded North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, GA (a suburb of Atlanta), among several other popular ministries, is also a well-practiced photographer.
Reggie’s beautiful daughter Hannah is a talented painter, and actually makes a living doing it. You can see her current work for sale here. Tripp is a sketch comedy artist, along with his partner Tyler. Their “Tripp and Tyler” show has become enormously popular on YouTube with original, and freaking hilarious, ideas. I’m telling you right now, do yourself a favor and go watch their videos here. Trust us on this one. In fact Hannah and Tripp just moved from Atlanta to Los Angeles because of developments in Tripp’s comedy career. I can’t wait to see what happens with his work. He is the real deal.
Back to the wedding, which was our very first of the year. We really couldn’t have asked for a better wedding to start us off. The venue, the amazing Barnsley Gardens in Adairsville, reminded us of our own wedding venue with its ruins of a once-stately mansion. And the reception had a packed dance floor from start to finish, thanks to the band A-Town A-List, who are friends with the couple and many of the guests through the Atlanta arts community.
My favorite moment of Hannah and Tripp’s wedding occurred right after they left. Hannah and Tripp had made their exit under a canopy of sparklers, the extended ones that go for a long time. After the newlyweds’ car had pulled away, the guests’ sparklers were still going strong. Someone said, “Well what do we do now?” What they did was spontaneously sing the Star-Spangled Banner with all the gusto and vigor they could muster. It was a random, hilarious, perfect ending to one amazing wedding. I only wish Hannah and Tripp could have experienced it! Hopefully someone video’d it.