Christ the King Catholic Church was the setting at 2 p.m. Friday, July 5, for the marriage of Rosemary Catherine Hart and Matthew Luke Willis. Officiating was the Rev. Andrew Hart, brother of the bride and associate pastor at Immaculate Conception Church in Fort Smith.
Evelyn and Robert Hart, 12915 Morrison Road, are the parents of the bride. She is the granddaughter of the late Ethel and Fred Hart of Little Rock and the late Bernice and Stanley Spond of Mesa, Ariz.
The groom is the son of Carole and Keith Willis of O’Neill, Neb. His grandparents are Betty Bogus of Columbus, Neb., the late Carroll Bogus and the late Irene and Merril Willis of Lincoln, Neb.
The chancel was decorated with two arrangements of white gladioli, hydrangeas, roses and calla lilies. Music was by organist Mark Binns, cantors Bernard Turgeon and Suzanne Bannister and Katie Morrow, sister of the groom, who sang a Communion meditation song. Readings were by Amy Nordness and Liz Koenig, sisters of the groom, and Laura Rogers, cousin of the bride.
Given in marriage by her father, the bride wore an ivory satin A-line gown with a lace, pearl and crystal overlay. She carried a bouquet of white hydrangeas and cabbage roses. The bouquet was wrapped with lace from her mother’s wedding veil and a rosary given to her by her late grandfather.
Serving as matron of honor was Sarah Streitwieser of Overland Park, Kan. Bridesmaids were Anne Tucker of Gretna, Neb., sister of the groom; Carolyn Olson of Austin, Texas, cousin of the bride; Katie Hund of Mission, Kan.; Jill Shatkus of Santa Clarita, Calif.; and Francesca Peretti of Long Beach, Calif. They wore navy sateen cotton knee-length dresses with Empire waists and pleated skirts and carried lavender hydrangeas and shell pink cabbage roses.
Flower girls were Lillian and Rosemary Streitwieser of Overland Park and Mya Tucker of Gretna, niece of the groom.
Best man was Andrew Willis of Lincoln, brother of the groom.
Groomsmen were Kiel Neumann of San Francisco; Stephen Hart of Little Rock, brother of the bride; Brian Esser of Knoxville, Tenn.; Kyle Dohrman of Carterville, Ill.; and Tripper Robinson of Martinez, Ga. Guests were seated by 2nd Lt. Michael Spond of Columbus, Miss., and John Zapanta of Phoenix.
A reception at Pleasant Valley Country Club followed the ceremony. The buffet held an arrangement of white gladioli, hydrangeas and roses. The ballroom tables were decorated with glass bowls of white hydrangeas surrounded by votive candles.
The bride graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in communication sciences and disorders from Rockhurst University in Kansas City, Mo., where she was a member of Alpha Sigma Alpha. She received a master’s degree in speech-language hearing from the University of Kansas and graduated magna cum laude. She is a speech language pathologist forthe Papillion-La Vista school district in Nebraska.
The groom graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in biology from Creighton University in Omaha, Neb. He graduated magna cum laude with a doctorate of optometry from Southern College of Optometry in Memphis. While in optometry school, he was involved in medical mission trips with Student Volunteers in Optometric Service to Humanity and served on the national board for the American Optometric Student Association. He completed a residency at the Veterans Health Care System of the Ozarks in Fayetteville and is an optometrist for Midwest Eye Care in Omaha.
After a wedding trip to Costa Rica, the couple will live in Papillion.
High Profile, Pages 42 on 07/14/2013