Before Meghan Whitney started the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, her close friend told her multiple times to keep an eye out for his hometown pal, Jackson Wilbur, who was in her class. When orientation rolled around, she found him via name tag and excitedly introduced herself. “In what I recall as uncharacteristically icy fashion, Jackson revealed that there was nary a passing mention of me from our friend before ignoring me in favor of the dean’s opening address,” Meghan shares. He redeemed himself later that week by asking her to be his beer pong partner. And they had their first official date the following morning over omelettes and pancakes. “Who says business school isn’t romantic?!”
After three-and-a-half years together, Jackson proposed at home in Atlanta before they went to The Eras Tour. She had just landed that morning from New York City, and he picked her up while wearing pants “with a button,” she remembers. A formal choice for Jackson on an early morning airport run, when pajamas would’ve been expected. Once at home, she saw that he had transformed their home with flowers, framed photos of them, and a pair of Aperol Spritzes. “As Jackson dropped to one knee and offered up his carefully planned and loving proposal speech, my mind had gone completely blank save for the thought, ‘I can’t believe I’m getting engaged wearing dirty white Hokas and plane athleisure—he got me good.’” Then, she excitedly said yes!
When it came to wedding planning, the couple didn’t have a specific location in mind but knew the vibe they wanted—“an elevated backyard dinner party in a beautiful setting with a heavy emphasis on florals, preferably in the year 2024,” Meghan says. “All the credit for Middleburg/Glenstone Gardens/Red Fox Inn goes to Calder Clark! We hired Calder after seeing her beautifully-designed Montana wedding on OTM.”
In terms of aesthetic, Meghan actually drew a lot of inspiration from past Over The Moon Weddings. “I recall Jenna Killian, another OTM Bride, describing her wedding as ‘steeped in tradition, but full of whimsy.’ Hi Jenna, I don’t know you, but I love your words!” Meghan laughs. “I shared them with my mom, Calder, and her team, and I think we were able to have that ethos infused into every element of the weekend. . . And then there’s Carter and Joe Perella’s wedding, also in Middleburg. I remember thinking, ‘Wow this Middleburg place looks magical.’”
With the venue and aesthetic settled, Meghan moved on to one of the more stressful parts of planning—choosing her wedding wardrobe. “As a wildly indecisive girl who cares deeply about fashion, dress shopping was my personal hell, but I was thrilled with my final choices,” the bride laughs. She kicked things off in a One Of dahlia-print dress for the rehearsal on Friday. “I believe I first saw this fabric featured on OTM in the form of a two-piece set—still available online!—but politely asked Patricia Voto if she might be willing to make it into a dress.” That night, she changed into an Elizabeth Filmore bias cut silk dress with an embellished overlay.
For her ceremony, Meghan chose Oscar de la Renta’s Hydrangea Dress with the matching veil. Her sisters complemented her in Markarian and Carolina Herrera. Then halfway through the reception, the bride put on a vintage sequin halter from Happy Isles with Jimmy Choos. “I felt like a 1940s Hollywood starlet in it,” the bride gushes. Throughout the events, Anna Breeding always made sure Meghan looked like the best version of herself with the perfect amount of glam.
Jackson looked handsome in a classic black Tom Ford tuxedo and changed into a white dinner jacket halfway through the reception. “Boys have it so much easier, I tell ya,” Meghan laughs.
On October 19, 2024, Meghan and Jackson wed in a traditional Episcopalian ceremony, officiated by Reverend Doctor Mark Anshutz, who married the bride’s parents. “He infused the ceremony with love, solemnity, and references to the movie Sweet Home Alabama—which he mistakenly called ‘Good Home Alabama’ once or twice; we do not hold that against him!” the bride laughs. The ceremony ended with the couple’s personal vows.
The reception tent was warm, inviting, and cozy with florals by Sophie Felts. “Of course, the tent was Calder’s fabulous brain child, but my mom, Nancy, has an incredible eye for interiors and florals as well and she definitely left her fingerprints on Calder’s design,” Meghan explains. “The handsome hunter green printed linens and magnolia trees anchoring the dance floor drove the rest of the tent design.”
After a delicious dinner by Susan Gage Caterers, the band, Atlanta Showstoppers, became electric. “They absolutely ripped all night, but Purple Rain was a highlight,” Meghan shares. “My dad came up to me on the dance floor at one point during ‘Rosalita’ and I thought he was about to share a word about how proud he was of me, or the event we pulled off, or how this was the best party ever. Instead, he screamed, ‘This is my high school anthem!’ and danced off to be closer to the band. You can take the boy out of New Jersey. . .”
After Erich McVey and Over The Moon Top Videographer Moon & Back lensed the couple crowd surfing to their grand reception exit, the party continued. “We went to King Street Oyster Bar, where we chowed down on late-night bar food, caught up more with our friends, and watched the Yankees win Game 5 of the ALCS to go to the World Series,” Meghan remembers. “An exciting way to cap off the best night of our lives, though Jackson would like it to be known he is *not* a Yankee fan, unlike many of our guests who were in a attendance, but a Royals fan.” He concludes, “Go Royals.”
