Liz Schrenk 2/3/25 Liz Schrenk 2/3/25

Josie & Denis’ Romantic and Intimate NYE Wedding

Josie and Denis met at a Christmas party in 2022 where they spent the evening chatting about the National Parks. Although they left at the same time and hugged in the hallway . . .

Josie and Denis met at a Christmas party in 2022 where they spent the evening chatting about the National Parks. Although they left at the same time and hugged in the hallway, they didn’t exchange phone numbers.

It wasn't until that Summer when Josie and Denis reconnected when playing on the same softball team. They started dating that Summer and never looked back. In March of 2024 Denis and Josie went on a Spring Break trip with Josie' brother and his girlfriend to explore a few National Parks. On the last day of their trip, they took a boat to Channel Islands National Park. After a short hike, at the most beautiful viewpoint overlooking the ocean, Denis got down on one knee and proposed. Caught off guard and excited, Josie replied "thank you.! After quickly clarifying that "thank you" is a yes, they all celebrated with splits of Champagne that her brother had been sneakily hauling around in his hiking pack.

When Josie and Denis planned their wedding they decided to keep it small by inviting only their immediate families to join them as they were married on New Year’s Eve. Conrad and I love NYE weddings and were honored to be a part of this intimate celebration! When we arrived at the gorgeous St. Hyacinth Basilica we were excited to realize our connection to Denis was through his sister Emily whose wedding we shot in 2021. It was so great to see Emily and her husband Mark again and meet their adorable baby boy!!

St. Hyacinth was filled with poinsettias and lights leftover from Christmas, making for the most romantic backdrop for Josie and Denis’ traditional Catholic wedding ceremony. Josie looked gorgeous as she walked down the aisle with her Dad. Josie's mom passed away in 2011 but her spirit was in that church as Josie married the love of her life. Josie beamed as her brother adjusted her beautiful satin gown at the altar while Denis lit up when he slipped the wedding band on Josie’s ring finger.

After the ceremony we had a tiny bubble “exit” in the foyer to avoid the cold rain outside. Josie’s Dad had brought a gorgeous light-blue vintage Cadillac for the newlyweds to leave the church in, we wish the weather would have cooperated a bit more for photos with this beautiful car! Maybe someday we can do an anniversary shoot for these two with the Caddy!

We had lots of fun exploring downtown Chicago with Josie and Denis’ family on the trolley, it was wonderful catching up with Emily and Mark on our way to take photos at Union Station. When we arrived we took some pretty pictures of the newlyweds both outside and then inside the stunning Beaux-Arts building. Once we wrapped with photos we made our way to Osteria Via Stato where the party officially began! The cozy room looked beautiful lit with candles and decorated with greenery and white flowers. Josie and Denis cut their house-made cheesecake and listened to the sweetest toasts before sharing their first dance together as husband and wife. Then Conrad and I took them out front for a fun champagne “exit” to ring in the New Year and toast the bride and groom – it was such a perfect day!! We can’t think of a better way to say goodnight to 2024 and kick off 2025!