Curious about the family? Here's some information on the key people!

The Bride (a.k.a. Mary Jo)

Mary Jo was born in 1986. For the first few years, her family lived in Albany on a dairy farm where her parents worked. Then the family moved to Watkins where Dad took over a trucking business and Mom started a daycare.

She started school at St. Anthony's in Watkins and made the big move to public school in Eden Valley at the beginning of fourth grade. In high school, she was in Choir, Theatre, Knowledge Bowl, and National Honor Society. In high school, she also started learning German; she went on a trip to Germany during the summer after her high school graduation and she studied abroad for a semester during her undergraduate study at the University of Minnesota.

Mary Jo and Will met during freshmen year when they lived on the same floor in Middlebrook Hall. After graduation, Mary Jo headed back to her hometown to do some working and volunteering. This past June, she returned to the U of M to work on a graduate degree in Education. When she finishes this summer, she will be qualified to teach German or English as a second language. She and Will hope to spend a year or two in Germany next year.

When Mary Jo gets a free minute, she likes to watch T.V. or read. One of her favorite things to do is visit Will in Fargo. They like to watch movies, cook, or bake cookies, and get together with friends to play party games like Apples to Apples and Cranium. Mary Jo is looking forward to them being together after they finish school.

The Groom (a.k.a. Will)

Will was born back in 1985. He spent his childhood on a farm. His father owned and operated a furniture manufacturing business while his mother owned and operated an unfinished furniture marketing website. Is it any wonder Will is a tech nerd that also likes to build things?

The younger years passed quickly and before anyone knew it, Will was in high school. The farm was Will's home when he was younger, but high school offered many new opportunities and between Swing Choir, Theatre, Knowledge Bowl, Speech, National Honor Society, Student Council, and Community Education, Will spent a significant portion of his time at the high school.

Once those fun years were past, Will headed off to college at the University of Minnesota. As you might know, that's where Will and Mary Jo met. He spent 4 years there getting a B.S. in Computer Science. He is currently living in Fargo working on a Masters in Computer Science from North Dakota State University. He will be completing his degree just weeks before the reception.

Between work and school, Will enjoys spending time with his favorite girl, playing video games with his roommate, cooking, and building whatever he feels needs to be built (the last major project was putting a computer in an Xbox 360 case... it didn't end well).

The Bride's Parents (a.k.a Dennis and Pam)

Pam and Dennis live in Watkins, MN. They have been married for 33 years. Dennis owned a trucking business, hauling cattle to the Cities until he became a mailman. Pam runs a daycare in their house, she drives an ambulance, and she does a paper route in the morning. They have four kids, Joni (Mary Jo), Kari, Clifford, and Dennis Jr. (D.J.). They have five grandkids and one on the way. D.J.'s kids include Hali, Zach, Alex, and Amber. Kari has Eddie and one due in December. During the summer, Pam and Dennis like to go to the lake to fish and stay at the camper.

The Groom's Parents (a.k.a Eldon and Mary)

Eldon and Mary live on a farm outside Appleton, MN. They have been married for 41 years. Eldon worked as a furniture manufacturer for 25 years before getting into the crop insurance business as an adjuster. Mary owns and operates her own unfinished furniture web marketing business. They have two children, Will (you might know who he is!) and Nancy. They are also the proud grandparents of two girls - Yaneliz and Eva. In their free time they like to knit, fall asleep in front of the TV, and spoil their grandchildren.

The Bride's Siblings (a.k.a DJ, Cliff, and Kari)

Kari lives in Watkins with her husband Jesse and their son, Eddie. She had a second baby, Evan, in December. Kari is a nurse and Jesse works at RIE Coatings in Eden Valley.

Cliff lives in Watkins. He works at Cold Spring Granite Company.

D.J. lives with his wife, Marsha in Watkins with their four kids, Hali, Zach, Alex, and Amber. D.J. works at a brewery and Marsha drives a dump truck.

The Groom's Sibling (a.k.a Nancy)

Nancy lives in Florida with her two daughters Yaneliz and Eva. She is currently working in the healthcare industry.