Christopher Milligan should thank Laura Haines Richards, the woman who now is his wife, for placing a hand-written note in his pocket after they met at a friends' wedding two years ago. The note, similar to the ones passed in grade school classrooms, had her phone number on it, because she did not have a chance to say goodbye to him that day. "I had a good feeling he'd call," she says.
Indeed he did. He even kept the note for another special day, when he proposed to Laura on the rocks near Cliff Walk. "He pulled out a piece of paper ... and said, 'Do you remember this?' It was the note I had left him with my number on it," Laura says. "He then said, 'Turn it over,' and as I did, he got down on one knee. On the back of the note he had written, 'Will you marry me?'"
It was no surprise the couple chose to wed at Astors' Beechwood Mansion - it has been owned by Chris' father and stepmother, Bob and Lace Milligan of Newport, for more than 25 years. Built in 1851 and purchased by William and Caroline Astor in 1881, the mansion holds a special place in the couple's hearts. "I've always wanted to get married by the water," says Laura, daughter of Nathan and Sally Follansbee of Farmington, Connecticut. "Beechwood is amazing, and the house has a special meaning to Chris, and now, me too."
Luckily, the rain held off for their afternoon ceremony on the back lawn of the oceanfront mansion, where 160 family and friends had gathered. "Our officiant helped us create a ceremony that was all about love and friendship," she says. "It was wonderful."
The celebration moved into the elegant ballroom where the seashore had also been relocated for the couple's beachy wedding. Each table was named for their favorite beaches (from Newport to Costa Rica to Greece), seashells were scattered from tables to mantels and Beach Boys tunes crooned from speakers across the ballroom. The relaxed, beachside barbeque included a gourmet burger bar, macaroni and cheese with sweet potato fries plus chicken and beef kebabs with corn on the cob.
The bride and groom also were relaxed in their beach-inspired attire for the day. Laura donned a classic strapless gown by Modern Trousseau with her initials stitched into the interior ("That took care of my something blue!" she says) while Chris and his groomsmen slipped into Vineyard Vines surfer neckties and topsiders, with blue blazers and khaki pants.
After the wedding, the couple whisked off to St. John U.S. Virgin Islands for six days in paradise. They recently moved from Newport to Windsor, Connecticut, where Laura is an English teacher at Loomis Chaffee School, and Chris is a financial account executive.-AS