Katie and Tom fell in love during graduate school in Milwaukee and, after moving to Northern California in 2015, started a love affair with Lake Tahoe. Katie taught Tom how to “pizza” and “french fry” on the slopes at Squaw, they have backpacked all over the Sierra, and when they got a Golden Retriever, Tahoe quickly became “Westley’s” favorite place to adventure too! Like so many couples, it was a natural choice to get married in their favorite place and High Camp at Squaw Alpine was selected as their venue.
Unfortunately, their wedding date was less than two months after the onset of the covid-19 pandemic and, at a month out, Katie and Tom chose to postpone – still hopeful that they would get to have all of their guests at the wedding. In June, with the pandemic still evolving, they decided not to postpone again and instead whittled the guest list down from 174 to just 17 immediate family members. While the decision was an emotional and agonizing one, Katie says they had no idea how special this very intimate day would be.
Connecting over Zoom, the bridal party all put on their dresses so that Katie could have the “getting ready” moment she had dreamed of and were able to witness her first look moment with her dad. Katie and Tom had the High Camp elevation of 8200 feet engraved on their wedding bands and the team at Squaw Valley arranged SUV transportation up to the venue since the tram was no longer running on their new date, providing a magical view of the mountains and wildflowers in full bloom.
On a perfectly clear day, the High Camp deck was adorned with greenery and roses by Love and Lupines and the blue waters of Lake Tahoe were in view. As a beloved family member, Westley was in the wedding and wore the sweetest garland too! After a ceremony officiated by their close friend, Katie and Tom rode down the mountain with their families and celebrated by dancing to a special playlist.
Getting married in 2020 has required patience and flexibility from everyone involved and we love the way this sweet couple and their venue kept it focused on what mattered most. Congratulations Katie and Tom – today we’re celebrating you!
