Felicita Wilhelm and Christopher Vidrine exchange vows at their surprise wedding

Felicita Wilhelm of Abbeville, Louisiana and Christopher Vidrine of Youngsville, Louisiana were united in marriage on Saturday, May 22, 2021, in the Rose Garden at the home of the brides parents in Abbeville, Louisiana. Officiating the 7:00 p.m. ceremony was Rachel Wilhelm, cousin of the bride.
Felicita is the daughter of Edward and Susan Wilhelm of Abbeville, Louisiana. She is the maternal granddaughter of the late Edison and Greta Ortego of Denham Springs and the paternal granddaughter of the late Edward and Irene Wilhelm of Abbeville.
A 2008 graduate of the Academy of the Sacred Heart in Grand Coteau, the bride attended LSU and UL graduating from UL with an Environmental Science Degree and is currently enrolled at the American University of the Caribbean Medical School.
Christpher is the son of Brian and Melissa Vidrine of Lafayette, Louisiana. He is the paternal grandson of Ronal and Theresa Vidrine and the maternal grandson of Michael and Janis Midkiff of St. Louis, Missouri and the late Shirley Midkiff.
A 2005 graduate of Northwest High School, Christopher attended LSU and is employed by Thibodeaux Electric.
Escorted by her father, the bride’s dress was purchased exclusively at A-Net’s Bridal Boutique. The Crepe gown was a sheath silhouette with a higher neckline. It was accented with a lace applique throughout the entire bodice and covering the sheer illlusion back. The dress was completed with covered buttons down the back and lace applique at the end of the train. As a final touch, she wore a ‘something borrowed’ cathedral length veil worn by her mother on her wedding day over 33 years ago. The head piece was embellished with tear drop pearl beading.
The bride chose a rustic hand wrapped bouquet of fresh snapdragons, larkspur, roses, carnations, mum daisies, Queen Anne’s Lace and baby’s breath.
Bridesmaids included Kallie C. Miller, Jillian F. Mouledous, Meaghan L. Winston, Jessica M. Ardoin, Cherie E. Goff, Taylor Stokes and Ryan Pinkerton. They wore individual styles of white and ivory mid-length dresses, personally selected by each attendant.
Attending as flower girl was Vivian Vidrine, daughter of the groom. She wore an ivory dress with High-Low hem designed with pink and green floral applique. Headpieces were also worn made by the mother of the bride which included baby’s breath intertwined with pink spray roses and sheer pink ribbon.
Serving as Groomsmen were Jordan Vidrine, Logan Thibodeaux, Adam Glover, Michael Lanclos, Devin Moreau and John Cramer.
Serving as Ring Bearer was Genevieve Vidrine, daughter of the groom. She wore an ivory dress with High-Low hem with pink and green floral applique.
Following the ceremony, a reception was held in the barn at the home of Ed and Susan Wilhelm where they served boiled crawfish and shrimp, fried fish and chicken tenders as well as chicken and sausage jambalaya with a variety of sweets.
The family’s working barn was transformed with an eclectic mix of string lights and chandeliers. A comfy sofa made of hay bales was one of the centerpieces. Casual fresh flowers filled available corners and tabletops. A fun background for the wedding cake framed the wedding party.
The bride’s cake was 3 stacks of naked red velvet cake adorned with greenery and wildflowers placed on logs and was made by Linda Choate. The groom’s cake was a chocolate cake with Bavarian chocolate filling, dressed with soccer items of whistle, referee cards and a small soccer ball.
The couple plan to reside in Abbeville, Louisiana.