The General’s Residence at Fort Mason was the perfect San Francisco venue for Erika and Darek’s celebratory wedding. After dating for 16 years, this couple wanted to make it official in front of all their friends and family. Their beloved chocolate lab, Lucie, helped calm the couple’s nerves before the wedding with several cuddles and was an official bridesmaid. Becuase they wanted to be with their guests as soon after the ceremony as possible, they chose to see eachother for a first look . This allowed us to do some wonderful portraits prior to the wedding. Oh boy, it was much more emotional than I had expected, with Darek in tears when he saw his beautiful bride. But who could blame him? The ceremony was breathtaking with the views of the San Francisco Bay on a gloriously clear, summer day. The party definitely started at cocktail hour, followed by incredible speeches and a long night of dancing. Congratulations to Erika and Darek!
From Erika, “Darek and I have been courting, dating since the summer of 2001! We meet at a local bar when we were both out with friends one night and the rest is history. We moved into our home with Sweet Baby Lu (Lucie our Chocolate Lab) in the summer of 2009 and have been a happy little family since, aka “the Darikas”. We had discussed getting married as well as had been asked when we would get married many of times! Although we both knew we wanted to spend our lives with one another… well, life got in the way and we went on living it. Until Christmas Eve of 2015 when Darek pulled off the ultimate surprise and proposed! So there we were, headed into Christmas Eve mass- one of our many holiday traditions- and Darek appear to have fallen on the stairs and then I realized that he had dropped to one knee to pop the question 🙂 We kinda found our venue on accident. We had always thought about the Log Cabin in the Presidio, but after we stopped by we decided it wasn’t for us. Then a few days later, we were on a hike with Lu and happened by The General’s Quarter… pretty much new it was for us before even stepping inside! We have also loved the Old Military properties in the city and hike around them frequently so this could have not been more perfect. The irony of the venue, we both grew up as military brats yet neither one of us ever lived on a military base.”
Some interesting history about Fort Mason, where the General’s Residence is located: Fort Mason, once known as San Francisco Port of Embarkation, US Army, in San Francisco, California, is a former United States Army post located in the northern Marina District, alongside San Francisco Bay. Fort Mason served as an Army post for more than 100 years, initially as a coastal defense site[3] and subsequently as a military port facility. During World War II, it was the principal port for the Pacific campaign.[2]Today it is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area and the site of several cultural facilities. The entire fort area is listed as a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places,[2] with over 49 buildings of historic significance, spread over 1,200 acres (490 ha).[4][5]while the lower port area is a National Historic Landmark District, designated for its role in World War II.
Venue: General’s Residence, Fort Mason Coordination: Cynthia West Floral Design: Revel Floral Catering: Knight’s Catering Gown: Pronovias Bridal Boutique: Novella Bridal Entertainment: Elite Entertainment
