Yachta Mache - 12

Kathy was the first of us to get married. Her wedding to Dan was the 23^rd of April, and she asked me to play the organ. I had been playing the church organ at the hospital chapel for most of the year, so wasn't daunted by the prospect, and she picked hymns and marches that I was familiar with.

We had a surprise shower for Kathy a week or so before the big occasion. Then a group of of us including Juanita, Jeanette and Carolyn and me drove to New Jersey for the wedding. When we arrived at the church, I went into the choir loft and played background music on the organ.

The signal was given by the priest that I should begin playing the wedding march, but we could see that Kathy's mother had not yet gone to her seat, so I dithered around a bit and kept on with my soft background music. Finally with the priest nearly having conniptions and making gestures that no one would ignore, I started the march. I played the whole thing through three times, and still no
Kathy. Then on the 4^th go, she did make it down the aisle. Later we found out the problem.

Her veil, which was homemade – was too heavy, and each time she took a step down the aisle, it fell off backwards. So they put it back and started again, and the same thing happened. But the thing did get fixed in place  the end, and she did get married. (pictured above)

As they were living close by, she still was able to get to work okay including her share of early morning duties and on-call nights.

Ruth had a boyfriend too, by this time – a lovely man called Neil. She had decided to stay on working at the hospital after we finished, and they would marry within the next year.

Jeanette, who frequently told us that her engagement ring had been delivered to her inside one of the chocolates in a box – given by her boyfriend Lee on Valentines Day. She too was planning a wedding in the next year.

Carolyn had had a slight hiccup in her wedding plans. She was contacted when her fiance was in a serious car accident, and she rushed off home to be with him. But when she returned, she no longer was wearing her huge diamond, and started dating Bud (another of the dentists that I rather fancied).

Eventually she told me the story. Mike wasn't alone in the car when he had his accident. He was with his new girlfriend, and had been living with her for quite some time. So the wedding was off.

But tbefore long Mike crawled sufficiently and the wedding and the ring were back on. Carolyn asked me to be maid of honor and I was so thrilled, and honored to be asked. She had no sisters, and we were as close friends as anyone I had known for many years. The wedding was scheduled for early October in Indianapolis,which was not all that far away from my soon to be location of Evanston.

Helen K was going back to live and work in Chicago, and I hoped that we would be able to get together when I was settled there.

Helen B was also getting married to George is September as soon as their half of the group finished, and moving back to Pennsylvania. She gave me a huge help in my next year's plans, as she knew a girl, Marcie, who was at graduate school at Northwestern University in Evanston and was looking for a roommate, and gave me her address. So before long, I was fixed up with a roommate, who was prepared for me to make the decision about the apartment, as she would be on vacation in Mexico for most of the summer.