Dona's nephew Ram Papish and his wonderful partner and friend Dawn Harris (formerly Dawn Grafe) threw the best wedding party / celebration ever! Dona and I drove out to Oregon for the event; it was hotter than a bear's butt coming up the John Day River. We stopped at the John Day Fossil Beds and went through the museum, which is really cool -- do it if you're out that way.
Ram and Dawn billed this as the "Ram and Dawn Wedding Games," and we were instructed not to dress up too much, as we would likely be getting a bit dirty. My kind of event...
We wandered around a bit trying to find the dang place, but that's generally a good recommendation -- places that are not easy to find are usually more fun, and this proved to be no exception.
My apologies to the musicians and officiator people, as I didn't get their names...
|
|
| The Setting |
A friend of Ram and Dawn's officiated and we learned a few new things they probably didn't want us to know, and re-affirmed some others we already did know.
 |
| Introductions |
The couple's vows were touching and telling, but also delightfully humorous at times. They had clearly put a lot of time into them.
 |
| Vows |
Nobody dropped any rings...
 |
| Exchange of Rings |
The happy couple got their hands dirty and planted a peach tree. I'm going back to visit in August...
 |
| Tree Planting |
Ram is a bit of a magician, I think. Anyway, he had a nice big roomy hat, so they did a hat trick.
 |
| Hat Trick |
As in many famous weddings, Ram and Dawn released a pair of birds.
 |
| Bird Release |
Eventually, they got to kiss.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| And it was good. |
Then we retired to the back yard for lots of good food and wedding cake.
 |
| Cake! |
And then it was time for the games. Dona and I had been looking forward to this, but we had no idea what to expect -- except we knew it would be good.
 |
| The Wedding Games |
Ram's grandmother, Dorothy Fawcett, traveled all the way from Missoula to Oregon for the big event. It's not every day one of your grandsons throws a wedding party! She cheered everyone on in the games.
 |
 |
 |
| Dorothy, Mary, and Ram's friend Angelina | Joe did all the driving... |
After things quieted down Dona and I gave Ram and Dawn the present we had brought for them.
 |
| A Token to Remember Us By |
All in all, a fine time. For those interested, Ram and Dawn like to put on various events of a more public nature. As evidenced by the great fun and imagination of the actual Wedding Games, if you have a chance to take part in one, we highly recommend it. Uri (one of Ram's brothers) says these games were pretty toned down compared to the "regular" ones, so it sounds like a sure-fire winner to me!
This page last updated on 2013-08-12.
