We wanted to honour my Jewish background and Helen’s Korean background in our wedding, so we had designed a chuppah that reflected both Jewish and Korean cultures
Jaron is a design partner at Safdie Architects in Boston who grew up in Michigan. Helen is a design architect, founder of her own Brooklyn-based firm and teaches at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. Atlanta is her hometown.
We met through a friend in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 2010. We started off and still continue a near-distance relationship. Helen maintains her apartment in Brooklyn, while I use my apartment in Cambridge. The separate locations might prove difficult for others, but for us it is perfect. We focus when we need to and then come together during the weekends. We visited Iceland in 2018. We were on our way to check into an Airbnb close to Jökulsárlón Bay when Helen decided she wanted to pull over and take a look at the glacial lake at night. I proposed to her on its quiet shores. Her response was: “Challenge accepted!”
We wanted to honour my Jewish background and Helen’s Korean background in our wedding, so we had designed a chuppah that reflected both Jewish and Korean cultures, and in lieu of a traditional paebaek (폐백, the Korean wedding ceremony), we decided to honour family and friends by performing the deep bow (kneeling down to the floor) to the audience on both sides of the aisle. Helen wore a modern Korean hanbok designed and crafted by Jasmine Park at The Hanbok in New Jersey, who was recommended by a friend Amy Yang who also contributed to the design. At the reception, Helen wore a dress she’d worn at another wedding event we’d had in Singapore a month and a half before. It included a cape by friends at Maes London, who make impeccable runway pieces for top British fashion designers. Jaron wore a custom tuxedo from J. Mueser in New York, a talented designer and tailor who kindly made a matching yarmulke for the ceremony.
The ceremony was officiated by a friend, Mac Folkes, who composed an original work for us called “Dearly Beloved”. It was intensely meaningful to us both at the time, but is profoundly memorable now, as he has recently passed away. We will miss his innate wit and ability for satire, and his larger-than-life personality. When dinner was winding down, a large door opened, revealing a hidden party room and the D4YL dancers, a local dance crew of Atlanta kids aged 11-18. A few nights prior, choreographer Eboni Johnson helped us learn a dance move to walk out in. It was so much fun. The crew stayed for the majority of the party, with their parents. We were ecstatic that everyone was having such a great time dancing.
photographer Farrah Power / videographer AHP / bride’s wedding dress Pronovias / bride’s cape Maes London / custom tuxedo Jake Mueser / transportation Atlantic Limousine / marriage counselling Nellie Nguyen & Regina Weir / cultural advisors Song Chong & Jeremy Lubin / venue The Westside Warehouse / planner Jane Han and Ted Paxton / makeup Lace Cosmetics / hair Ginger Rowland at Van Michael / bride’s ring Bliss Lau / groom’s ring Doyle & Doyle / groom’s shoes Alexander McQueen / body chain Bliss Lau / bride’s shoes Alexander McQueen / flora Rory Moon / choral music Georgia Tech Choral Group / installation Ryan Bollom, Gavin Bernard, Haviland Argo & Keith Sullivan / lighting installation Soojin Yoo / quality control Jonathan Lu celebrant Mac Folkes @macfolkes / dj Adam Darby / dance performance DY4L / back-up dancers Ivan Caceres & Phillip Appiah / dance room Helen Han / styling Chris Weir & Amy Yang / readers Song Chong & Regina Weir chuppah bearers Keith Sullivan, Ted Paxton, Leo Waible & Jeremy Lubin / catering Bold Events / beverages Tower / cake Lady M Cakes / toast Mack Scogin & Merrill Elam / takeaway patties Foxx Original Jamaican Restaurant / takeaway pies Pie Bar / wedding hanbok The Hanbok / bride’s party attire Zero + Maria Cornejo, Rick Owens bomber jacket / bride’s after-party attire Adidas Superstars and Walters Clothing
