When Sarah Cowhey went out to dinner at Charlie Gitto’s with her mom and aunt last December, she didn’t think twice when the waiter placed an extra menu on the table. She just figured he had miscounted. She never suspected Matt Oehlerking had orchestrated the entire evening from a distance. “Matt was supposed to be in Jefferson City at a work holiday party,” Cowhey says. “When I saw him walk into the restaurant, I tried to figure out what was happening. Then he got down on one knee.”

Cowhey was thrilled, and the wedding arrangements began. The two, who met at a 2011 World Series party in Illinois, consulted on all the plans, but Cowhey took the lead since Oehlerking still resides in Columbia, Missouri. Long distance never proved a challenge for the two, however. Even after the wedding, they are navigating the issue as Oehlerking works to transfer to his office’s St. Louis branch. “It doesn’t feel too much different to be married right now, but when Matt moves here, it will really hit home that things have changed,” Cowhey says.

The two worked together during their engagement to create handmade items to personalize the wedding decorations. And Cowhey chose her favorite colors—blue and silver—to accent the special event. “Matt was happy to help, but he really wanted me to have the wedding I wanted,” Cowhey says. “He let me do a lot of the planning, then he helped bring my ideas to life.”

She wanted something more unique than a hotel reception hall, which explains why she fell in love with Patty Long’s 9th Street Abbey the first time she visited. When she found Saint John Nepomuk Chapel just a few blocks away, everything fell into place. Of the wedding, she says, “Everything happened so fast that day. I just loved bringing everybody together. That was the best part.”

resources
ceremony | Saint John Nepomuk Chapel
reception | Patty Long’s 9th Street Abbey
gown | Casablanca
cake | Sarah’s Cake Shop
florist | Bloomin’ Buckets
music | Modde Music for ceremony, Elite Pro DJs for reception
honeymoon | Planned for 2017

wedding party
maid of honor | Lara Bennett Hacala
bridesmaids | Lana Link, Christine Sterett, Michelle Okon, Katherine LaVela
best man | Daniel Oehlerking
groomsmen | Ian Cowhey, Dave Meuer, Jeremy Jodarski, David Patnode
ushers | Keegan Meuer, Benjamin Reed
bride’s parents | Kathy Cowhey & and the late Terry Cowhey of Warson Woods
groom’s parents | Mark & Susan Oehlerking of Clive, Iowa

wedding date: august 26, 2016
photos: sarah corbett photography