Lauren & Derrek

« WE - Real Weddings

Share

By Teresa Forbes

A trip across the pond sealed the fate of Lauren Chivers and Derrek Krummel, high school acquaintances who fell in love in England.

"We knew we were right for each other when we took a trip to England after our senior year. Derrek got to see where I grew up and meet all of my friends and family," Lauren said.

Lauren, 24, was born in Basingstoke, about 50 miles southwest of London. She came to the United States when she was 8 after her father was transferred to the United States for business.

Derrek, 25, grew up in Hancock, Iowa.

The pair met during their junior year in Atlantic, Iowa. England has played a significant role in their relationship. New Year's Eve 2006, Derrek went to Instow Village, where Lauren was visiting family during the holidays.

"It was pouring down rain when I saw Derrek waiting for me on the coast of Instow," Lauren recalled. "He got down on one knee and asked me to marry him."

But before he popped the question, Derrek had sought permission from Lauren's father.

The couple celebrated their engagement with family and friends at a costume party.

Lauren and Derrek were married in an outdoor ceremony May 24, 2008, at Thompson Alumni Center at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. They chose Omaha for its proximity to their respective hometowns.

The couple's wedding blended English and Yankee traditions like hats, horseshoes and hydrangeas.

Clocks set to Omaha and London time were set on tables, and elegant signage noted the distance between Omaha and Basingstoke and other towns that held significance for the couple.

Several female guests wore hats in keeping with British tradition for social occasions.

"We didn't ask the ladies to wear them, but they knew it was going to be a mix of English and American traditions," Lauren said. "The English ladies carefully transported their hats as carry-on luggage."

Lauren and Derrek symbolized the blending of their lives in a sand ceremony using granules from the beaches of Cape Cod and Instow Village. At the conclusion of their vows, guests showered the couple with lavender and hydrangea petals held in pretty paper cones hung from the backs of chairs.

Guests received favor boxes filled with American cookies made by Derrek's grandmother and English tea bagged by Lauren's mother.

An aunt from Basingstoke presented the couple with horseshoes, a symbol of good luck in England.

For Lauren and Derrek, the highlight of the wedding involved pianists Tony Bohnenkamp and Jared Hall, both of Des Moines. "They played classical music for our outdoor ceremony, including the traditional British hymn, 'Jerusalem,' " Lauren said.

For the reception, they cranked it up a notch with a dueling piano routine. "It brought everyone to their feet for the whole evening," the bride said.

The newlyweds spent a week at Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri with family and friends from England.

"We don't get to see them often, so it was great" being together, Lauren said.

The Krummels are making their home in Kansas City, Mo.