Ain’t No Wedding, Like a Putnam County Wedding!

Megan Schroeder walks down Road F-6 with her sisters and stepmother prior to saying her vows. Photo Ben French

Putnam County’s own Megan Theresa Schroeder and Curtis Lee Tobe tied the knot on Saturday, August 22, at Leipsic’s St. Mary’s Catholic Church.

Curt and Megan Tobe. Photo Ben French

These weddings are not small and intimate gatherings, but rather large events where it seems everyone is invited.  With close to a dozen members in the wedding, per side, the day was filled with camaraderie and excitement. Raised in large families as dairy farmers and with more traditional values, the event was an all day affair.  The girls gathered at the Schroeder farmhouse in the morning to get ready as the boys were a few miles down road at the Tobe farm in Ottawa. Following the Catholic Mass wedding the couple left the church in style with a John Deere 7820.

The Tobe's steer a John Deere 7820 down State Street in Leipsic following their wedding.

The day continued as the wedding party and other close friends and family made the traditional bar crawl travelling by bus around the county.  The bride, a former 8 man for the elite BGSU Women’s Rugby Club, led the party in rugby songs and dancing. We even ran into another bride at one of the bars who happened to be having a Putnam County wedding of her own. Personally, my favorite part of the day is when the wedding party reached Mack and Rita’s bar in Miller City.  The party had pizzaz and sang along with country favorites Rascal Flatts and Toby Keith on the juke box as they held spirits high and danced on the bar.

The wedding party celebrates the marriage of Curt and Megan Tobe at Mack and Rita's in Miller City. Photo Ben French

Following the bar crawl the couple hosted their special day at Ottawa’s Knights of Columbus Hall where the love and energy was electric. It seemed as if everyone in the county was there. I was amazed at the amount of people there to celebrate the wedding.  One of the groomsmen laughed as he asked me “Is this your first Putnam County Wedding?”

The traditional Hog Trough Dance. Photo Ben French

Following the toasts and the cake cutting everyone was fed in a buffet style manner and the night continued on in song and dance. And these people were there to have fun. The bride and groom broke out in a choreographed dance during their first dance that brought down the house. The party hosted the traditional bouquet and garter toss, but added a more kid-friendly “candy toss.” They exchanged the dollar dance with a “dollar dash.” Where the couple raced around the hall in the duration of one song to see who could collect more ones. As the evening went on, the party had the ever popular “Hog Trough Dance.”  This is where any older sibling, who is still not married, has to dance on a small hog trough on the middle of the dance floor. The siblings were joined by other members of the party as it proved to be good fun. Once the hog trough was put away, family members brought out a float of sorts for the future teacher and dairy farmer to parade around the party on as people looked for position to snap photos.

Megan and Curt Tobe are paraded around the reception hall. Photo Ben French

Overall the event was loads of fun and definitely a new experience for me as a photographer.  It is so great to be involved on these days and see how each one unique in their own way. To be an insider with a family for a day and witness one of the most special days of their life.