09/01/2026
There’s something so profound about being invited back into people’s lives, over and over again - even as they enter different chapters, different seasons, and entirely different states.
When I met Sam, she was a brand-new Private at a new duty station, and I was in Ops, fresh out of a coma following my second cardiac arrest, trying to figure out where to place her in the unit. Our time serving together was short-lived, because shortly after, I retired.
A year later, we found ourselves working together again. Sam would walk in my fashion show after I had rebranded. At the time, I wanted her there because I thought she was beautiful, hardworking, and carried herself with a presence that belonged on that runway. And she did.
Almost a decade later, we would somehow end up living in the same area again.
Still Facebook friends, I received an inquiry that would ultimately refocus not only how I ran my business, but why I wanted to keep doing this work.
Sam & Beni- it has been an absolute pleasure to serve you over these last six months. What started as, “Where is the best fit for Hixon?” quickly became, “How can I show up for Sam?”
Neither of us are particularly sappy, but one thing I can say without a doubt is that I have never felt more at home in my hometown than I have since reconnecting with you and bringing all of my lives together in one place.
Everything aside, it is an absolute honor to be chosen to facilitate a day you both so deeply deserve - and to meet your partner, who I now consider family, too.
There are very few people in this world who know me and my story from start to finish, let alone people who have actually walked through it with me. Literally.
I know God has very big plans for you two, and I can’t wait to watch them unfold.
Also had to be God that I followed an Army Convoy to your wedding day 🤣✨
Thank you for allowing me to watch you walk down that stage again. 🤍
Florist + Planner: DAISI & CO. | TRAVEL FLORAL DESIGN & ART STUDIO
DJ: Hector
Photography: Oregon & Georgia Wedding Photographer
Live Painter: Kristine Petersen Westwood
Hair & Makeup: Shelby Valaer
Dress: True Society
