Wedding of the Week: Paperwork not a problem for couple who met in origami society
Jackie Ní Fhogartaigh and Matthew White. Pictures: Vitaliy Makhnanov of All About Us Video
Friendship unfolded between Jackie Ní Fhogartaigh and Matthew White when their paths crossed in the Origami Society at Cork Institute of Technology and they started dating a few years later, in 2018.
Jackie, who was born in the United States, moved to Cashel, County Tipperary, at the age of five, and has been based in Cork since 2013.
Matt relocated to Kerry from Britain's Isle of Wight, in 2008 before moving to Cork three years later.
They got engaged at Belfast Castle on May 17, 2018, during a road trip.
“The proposal wasn’t planned so came as a bit of a shock but nonetheless Jackie said yes,” said Matt.
Mike Neglia, pastor of Calvary Cork, officiated at their marriage in the city’s Imperial Hotel where they also held their wedding reception.
The bride’s grandfather, Marcus Fogarty, walked her down the aisle. And wishing the newlyweds well were Jackie’s mother Brid Ní Fhogartaigh and the groom’s parents, Cate and Norman White.
The bride’s sister, Saoirse Ní Fhogartaigh, and friend, Dami Fagbamila, were by her side as bridesmaids while the groom’s brother, Fabien White, was his best man with his pal, Carlos Reyes, as groomsman.
Jackie describes their wedding as “perfect”.
“The Imperial Hotel pulled out all the stops to make our day great,” she added.
The event was live-streamed to family and friends in the US and Britain and El Salvador, including Jackie’s dad, David, sister and grandparents.
Helena K, makeup artist, took care of the bridal hairstyling and makeup and Mercy Bash from Bashly Events co-ordinated additional wedding planning.
Vitaliy Makhnanov of All About Us Videos and Eamon Dennehy from Aisling Productions were the photographer and videographer respectively.
Vitaliy also filmed a short gift/letter exchange on the big day. “Reading this letter had me in tears, ruining my whole face of make-up,” said the bride.
Jackie’s eyes also filled as she entered the room for the 2pm ceremony: “I saw my uncle with his handheld camera, just as I remember for birthdays and communions, and then I saw my grandad and again I began to cry. Linda from the Imperial came to check on me asking if they were ‘happy tears’ — they were. I was completely overwhelmed with excitement.”
The couple’s friend, Joan Doherty, had made facemasks for all 30 guests. “I was actually happy to be wearing my handmade facemask at this point as it caught some of the tears, saving my cheeks from floods of tears,” said Jackie.
The couple also organised a symbolic planting. “Both our parents brought earth from their towns, my mother from Cashel and Matt’s mother from Seaview in the Isle of Wight, for the ceremony. Matt and I mixed both in a pot and planted a cactus to represent the resilience we want in our marriage,” said the bride.
“We also had communion just us two which felt really special.”
Sean O’Mahony was DJ for the occasion and kept the guests dancing long into the night. “One of the best parts about the day is that we got to stay in the penthouse. It felt like welcoming people to our MTV Crib,” said Jackie.
“We also organised a time capsule asking guests to place an item inside a chest which we will open in five years’ time.”
Jackie, a social care worker in the disability sector, and Matt, a software engineer at McAfee, will live in Cork. They honeymooned in Skerries, Dublin, for five days followed by two days at Dublin’s Gresham Hotel.
- If you'd like to see your wedding feature in the Irish Examiner, please email eve.kelliher@examiner.ie
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