Wedding bells chime in scenic surroundings

HAPPY COUPLE: Jenny Hills and Eric Kraus, who met on a blind date, were wed at St. Joseph's Church, Sylvania.

Wadsworth

Chapels, churches, gardens, outdoor patios, and beaches. They were the choice location for brides and grooms as wedding bells chimed. Brides, whether in a church or on a beach, all beamed with beauty in their gowns as grooms, dashing in tuxedos and suits, proudly waited at the altar.

A TROPICAL TOUCH: Joel Hertzfeld and Kara Stahl tied the knot in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, where flamingoes roam the Iberostar Bavaro Resort.

AN AFTERNOON garden reception along the Maumee River at Toledo Country Club was July 5 in honor of newlyweds Kara Stahl, daughter of Jim and Sue Stahl of Perrysburg, and Joel Hertzfeld, son of Clarence and Kathy Hertzfeld of Waterville. The new Mr. and Mrs. Hertzfeld, who reside in Cincinnati, were married June 17 in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. The afternoon ceremony, conducted in Spanish and translated in English, was in a tropical garden complete with peacocks and flamingos at Iberostar Bavaro Resort, where the celebration was a week long with 48 family members and friends. Adding to the tropical scene were the mothers of the bride and groom in fuchsia, the bridesmaids in tourmaline — meaning the color of water — and the fathers and groomsmen in tropical print shirts. The date was extra special for the bride's parents: It was their 31st wedding anniversary, so Mr. Stahl joked with his new son-in-law, “I'm counting on you to recall when our anniversary is.”

ANOTHER tropical garden wedding was June 5 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., aboard the Enchantment of the Seas. Corinn Gembolis of Sylvania and Chris Shemak of Toledo were bride and groom, and after their honeymoon on the island of St. Martens, they moved to West Toledo. The bride is the daughter of Debbie and Don Gembolis of Sylvania and the groom is the son of Diane and Richard Shemak of Toledo.

FAMILY CEREMONY: Mark Burton and Nancy Kistler-Burton included their daughters in their wedding.

IT WAS a family affair for Nancy Kistler and Mark Burton, who tied the wedding knot June 28 in Epworth United Methodist Church. Their daughters, Elizabeth and Tricia Merritt and Olivia and Paige Burton, were the bridesmaids and the bride's brother, Frank Kistler, Jr., gave the bride away.

Special guests were the bride's mother, Gloria Kistler, and the groom's father, Glen Burton.

A Hawaii honeymoon is slated for a later date. The newlyweds and their daughters will reside in the Ottawa Hills home of the late Frank Kistler, Sr.

BETH Knowlton, daughter of Warren and Judy Knowlton, formerly of Perrysburg now of Machiasport, Maine, was married to Erich Schubert June 14 — Flag Day — on the lawn of Toledo Country Club. The day was appropriate since the groom, the son of Greg and Cindy Schubert of Cave Creek, Ariz., is a lieutenant aviator in the Navy.

ALL SMILES: Beth Knowlton and Navy Lt. Erich Schubert were married on Flag Day at Toledo Country Club.

The Oriental theme of the evening was elegant. Tall black Oriental urns filled with willow branches, white lilies, peonies, and snapdragons anchored the “altar” on the lawn overlooking the river where the bride and groom repeated their vows. Shades of red peonies, tulips, lilies, and gerber daisies were everywhere, tied with golden ribbons with a touch of white. Inside, a sushi bar accented with ice sculptures kept guests busy until time for the candlelight dinner. After the cutting of the cake, the bride and groom entered the dance floor through an arch of swords for the first dance. Whew! What a whirlwind for the bride: She graduated with her master's from Harvard, a week later she was married, and a week after that, the newlyweds moved to Atsugi base in Japan, where he is stationed. But that won't be a problem for the bride, since she has been abroad since high school for education and employment.

LISA Zilba, daughter of George and Carol Zilba of Ottawa Lake, Mich., and Peter Kramp, son of Robert and Penny Stout of Bowling Green and Peter and Sharon Kramp of Maumee, were married June 7 in St. Patrick Historic Catholic Church with a reception following in Cambridge Place banquet hall. Among the bridal party, which included two former Miss Ohios, was matron of honor Loretta Bauer, the bride's 100-year-old-plus grandmother. After a Vancouver, B.C., honeymoon, the couple returned to their Toledo home.

HAPPY COUPLE: Jenny Hills and Eric Kraus, who met on a blind date, were wed at St. Joseph's Church, Sylvania.

LISA Ziems, daughter of Tom and Gretchen Ziems of Perrysburg, was married in the Windy City May 31 to Francisco Borras, son of Francisco and Elsa Borras of Rosemont, Ill. The Joseph Bond Chapel at the University of Chicago, where the bride and groom graduated, was the setting for the vows, although the couple did not meet until after they graduated and were working. A reception followed in the Museum of Contemporary Art, where guests were seated in trendy fashion at two long tables lined down the center with clear vases of red and gold orchids. The intimate affair included matron of honor Morgan Celik of Chicago, the bride's Maumee Valley Country Day School classmate, and best man Paul Lee of Pittsburgh, the groom's longtime friend. Also present were several friends from Perrysburg as well as former Perrysburgers including Larry and Dierdre Solari of Carmel by the Sea, Calif., Charles and Raye Pietsch of Naples, Fla., and Providence, R.I., and Joachim and Barbara Mueller of Frankfurt, Germany. A honeymoon in Spain is planned for later this month.

THEY grew up here in Toledo, he, a graduate of St. John's Jesuit High School, and she, a graduate of St. Ursula Academy, but they never met until they were out of college and on a blind date set up by his aunt, who was a friend of her mother. And the rest is history. Jenny Hills, daughter of Mary and Arthur Hills of Sylvania, tied the wedding knot May 31 with Eric Kraus, son of Carol and Paul Kraus of Maumee. The matchmaker was Fran Anderson. The ceremony was in St. Joseph's Church in Sylvania, with the Rev. Richard Wurzel, a family pastor of both the bride and the groom. After a reception at Inverness Club, the newlyweds honeymooned at a resort in Cancun, Mexico, before returning to their Waterville home.

THE PATIO overlooking the golf course of Sylvania Country Club, decorated with bouquets of fresh flowers, was the setting May 25 for the marriage of Alexa Sahadi and Ivan Knapp III.

The bride is the daughter of Alex and Theresa Sahadi of Toledo and the groom is the son of Rudite and Ivan Knapp, Jr., of St. Mary's, Ohio. The scene was elegant, no doubt, with the assistance of Mr. Sahadi, who has a close eye for detail, since he owns a decorating business. However, when it is your own lovely daughter, it can be more stressful, according to the dapper Mr. Sahadi, who remarked, “It was the most stressful thing of my life ... I thought I would have nervous breakdown. ... so I went for a massage to relax.” But the ceremony went on with perfection, as did the reception that followed with guests from across the country including Florida, Michigan, New York, Washington, and Arizona. After a St. Martin honeymoon, the newlyweds moved to their home in New York.