Date: Aug. 6

Her story: Johanna Leigh Noel, 27, was born in Silver Spring and raised in Mount Airy. She works as a speech-language pathologist. Her parents, Andrew and Shauneen Noel, live in Mount Airy.

His story: Andrew Robert Johnson, 28, was born in Downers Grove, Ill., and grew up in Virginia Beach, Va. He is a teacher for Chicago's public schools. His mother, Kimberley Johnson, lives in Virginia Beach, Va.; his father, James Johnson, lives in Aurora, Colo.

Their story: The couple met in August 2009 at James Madison University, where both were undergraduates.

“We met through friends at a small house party. He moved in next door to my good friend from freshman year,” Johanna recalled. “I thought that he was very good-looking and he was very sweet.”

They struck up a friendship but didn't start dating until March 2011.

“We were friends and then we realized we wanted to be with each other,” she said.

In January 2012, Johanna moved to Baton Rouge, La., to attend graduate school at Louisiana State University. Andrew followed her there a few months later.

“That sealed the deal,” she said.

They have lived in Chicago since 2013.

The proposal: The couple were engaged on July 25, 2015, during a hiking trip with Johanna's family at Sugarloaf Mountain near Frederick.

“I thought we were there to celebrate my sister's birthday, which was the day before,” she said.

When they all reached the top of an overlook, Andrew pretended to be getting ready to take a picture, and then got down on one knee.

“He said all these sweet things,” Johanna said. “Everyone else was in on it. I was shocked. I cried a little after.”

Venue: About 140 guests attended the wedding at St. Ignatius Church in Mount Vernon and reception at The Belvedere.

Flowers and decor: The colors of the wedding were emerald green with blush pink and gold accents. Floral Impressions in Hunt Valley provided the flowers, which included “star” and gray-colored roses.

Her dress: Johanna wore a blush, ivory lace dress by Maggie Sottero from TLC Bridal Boutique in Frederick. The fit-and-flare gown had a sweetheart neckline.

She also wore a cathedral-length veil custom-made by Joanie Jenkins in Frederick with lace Johanna got in Ireland while she was there for her sister's wedding in June.

Bridesmaids' attire: Bridesmaids wore halter-neck emerald green dresses by Dessy from Bella Bridesmaids in Baltimore.

Men's attire: Andrew and the groomsmen wore traditional black tuxedos by Joseph Abboud from Men's Wearhouse.

Music: Back To Zero, an Arlington, Va.-based band, provided the music. The couple's first dance was to Jasmine Thompson's acoustic version of “Rather Be” by Clean Bandit.

Food and dessert: Truffles Catering provided the food. Appetizers included cheese, fruit, crab dip and various passed options. Dinner consisted of a duet of maple salmon and beef. The couple also served a three-tier cake (carrot, red velvet and almond poundcake) from Graul's Market.

Favors: The couple handed out wine corkscrews with the words “Keep It Handy” — a play on their first names — as favors.

Special touches: The couple plan to go to Europe for their honeymoon.