Emma Kate Kaplan and Ryan Charles Peterson’s love story began years before their wedding day, when they met as teenagers at Durham Academy in North Carolina. “I moved from Allendale, New Jersey, to Chapel Hill, North Carolina, my sophomore year of high school, and that’s when I met Ryan,” the bride shares.

What began as a close friendship – strengthened by shared road trips to visit her brother and his sister in college – eventually turned into something more. “During the first year of our friendship, I only really saw him as a friend,” she admits, until one day when “he turned the charm up a notch and completely swept me off my feet.”

At the end of a dock in Wilmington, Ryan proposed to Emma. “He turned to me and gave me the sweetest speech starting with ‘You know you’re my best friend…’ and ending with ‘…Will you marry me?’” she recalls. After Emma said yes, she turned to find Ryan’s father photographing the moment, followed by a family celebration awaiting them back at home. “It was the absolute best day – aside from our wedding day of course!” Emma smiles.

The couple was married in Chapel Hill, choosing the Governor’s Club for its personal significance. “My parents live in the golf community where our wedding was, and I have always admired the setting,” Emma explains. With 185 guests in attendance, the spring ceremony began at 5PM and was intentionally kept brief. “It was a hot day in May, and I didn’t want our guests to sweat through their nice dresses and suits for too long.”

"We got that 'good luck rain on your wedding day’... but since it cleared up, we also got to enjoy the outdoor aspect of the cocktail hour and reception.”

Planning was guided by wedding planner Gina Myers of Gina Myers Weddings and Events (formerly La Cosa Bella Events), as well as the bride’s mother, who Emma describes as her “partner in crime.” “My mom ran the show with Gina,” she shares. “She would ask me what I wanted and then go relay it to Gina and the vendors.”

Reputation drove every vendor decision, and food became the couple’s top priority. “We decided to go with a stationed dinner,” she notes, calling the chef’s creations absolute “masterpieces.” The delicious spread included everything from a slider bar and salmon en croute to fajitas, sushi, and a seafood station that proved to be “a massive hit.”

The wedding design itself centered on a garden-inspired aesthetic. “I knew I wanted to stick with a ‘garden’ theme, and that’s exactly what we did,” the bride says. The color palette for the florals began as green and white – until a last-minute instinct prompted a change. “I started getting this feeling I needed a pop of color,” Emma recalls. Though initially nervous, the pair’s florist incorporated a deep eggplant purple, which “brought my centerpieces and bouquets from a six to a 10 immediately,” confirms the bride.

Personal touches were woven throughout the day, including a tribute to the bride’s grandmother, who passed away in 2020. “I had a little pin on my bouquet with a picture of her,” she shares, and an Irish blessing read during the ceremony honored her family heritage.

Two moments in particular stood out most to the couple: The first came just before the ceremony, as thunder rolled across the sky. “There was an incredibly loud burst of thunder and then I was cued to walk down,” remembers the bride. The moment she got under the tent and the ceremony began, it started to rain for just a couple of minutes – and by the time the ceremony was over, the sky had completely cleared up. "We got that 'good luck rain on your wedding day,’ which felt special, but since it cleared up, we also got to enjoy the outdoor aspect of the cocktail hour and reception.”

The second memorable moment unfolded during the final song of the reception. As “Cover Me Up” by Morgan Wallen played, the newlyweds slow danced while loved ones gathered around them. “This was the most special moment of the night,” Emma remembers, “having all of our loved ones surrounding us, while we soaked in the final moments of our wedding day.”

Looking back, Emma’s advice to others planning their wedding is both reflective and heartfelt. “Stick together,” she urges. “As the bride and groom, you are being pulled in so many directions, it’s easy to lose each other.” Another tip: “Pop into your reception room before the ceremony and really soak in all the details that you have planned out for the last several months.”

For a couple who fell in love as best friends and celebrated with intention, it was food, family, and feeling that took center stage – creating a day that their guests are still talking about long after the last dance.


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