Ashley Abbott & Will Hightower: A Mountain Brook Wedding

August 25, 2018

How We Met: I (Will) met Ashley in the fall of our freshman year at Auburn. We were fast friends, with lots of mutual friends. I came to see Ashley as a great friend and confidant, but as our last semester in Auburn started, I began seeing her as something much more – a life-giving, smart, poised, beautiful, funny, mature, salt of the earth, Jesus-loving woman. I realized that our years of friendship had just been preparing us for something far greater.
So, one night I went over to her house in Auburn and asked her out.

The Dress: Heidi Elnora specifically designed my (Ashley’s) dress, and it was exactly my vision. I wanted a classic, timeless dress that still had some drama. The satin fabric, plunging back and buttons made my dress feel so elegant.

Favorite Moments: When the church doors swung open, I locked eyes with Will at the end of the long church aisle. Any bit of nerves I had disappeared, and I was filled with so much excitement! During the ceremony, my sister, Rev. Lyndsay Cogdill Clark, gave a personalized homily directly to Will and me, and it felt like such an intimate moment at the altar.

Favorite Details: My dad and I walked down the aisle to his favorite hymn, “Come Thou Fount,” played by a violinist (Kelsie Baer) and pianist (family friend Rev. Kim Davis). It was the sweetest moment to have him by my side as that song was playing—it represented a lot of my childhood memories with him.