Betsy Gardella + Jim Smith – Seacoast Weddings

August 19, 2017

Wolfeboro, NH

Betsy Gardella and Jim Smith’s summer wedding, in a meadow overlooking the Ossipee Mountains, was uniquely New Hampshire. “I wanted to give our guests, many of whom were coming from out of state, a New Hampshire experience,” says Betsy. “We thought it would be lovely to be married on a farm.” The couple, who met through a friend and business associate of Betsy’s, hoped for a September wedding, but the venues they wanted were booked.

Fortunately, their wedding planner, Kate Malloy of Malloy Events, discovered the perfect venue: Moody Mountain Farm in Wolfeboro, with a rustic barn and spectacular views of the White Mountains. “They had a cancellation and that was it,” Betsy says. “We took it right away.”

The outdoor ceremony was conducted by two ministers—Rev. Gordon Crouch of the First Congregational Church in Hopkinton, NH, and Rev. John Gibbons, First Parish Unitarian in Bedford, MA—and included the couple’s adult children. Jim’s son, Arthur, did a reading; his daughter Aletha wrote and read an original poem; and Betsy’s daughter, Catherine, sang. Afterwards, paper streamers (shot from streamer guns by Gibbons and Crouch) rained down on the happy couple as they walked back up the aisle.

Guests enjoyed a dinner of locally-prepared food in the meadow then returned to the barn for a contra dance. “If the day had begun and ended with just the ceremony I would’ve been happy,” says Betsy. “The farm was the perfect venue. Everyone had a wonderful time.”

by Debbie Kane