Copyright Los Angeles Times
Erin Jones-Wesley and Nathaniel Green blended their respective heritages into a wedding celebration that honored everyone “I definitely knew something was different on the night we met,” says Erin Jones-Wesley about the first time she laid eyes on Nathaniel Green. The two met at a mutual friend’s birthday party in June of 2021, a big group affair with a lot of energy. But at the after party, the pair holed up in the kitchen, chatting with each other for close to five hours. “Afterwards, I asked my friends, ‘What’s the deal with that Nat Green guy?’ And, immediately everyone that was both of our friends just co-signed him and were like, ‘Yes, you should date him.’” But that’s something Jones-Wesley was already feeling for herself; even before she got the goods on Green, the two had set up time to meet again, this time at Emo Night at the Avalon in Hollywood. That was the site of the couple’s first kiss. Three weeks later, it was Jones-Wesley’s birthday, and there was a party. Her entire family was there. “And I’m telling them: ‘This is the guy I have a crush on. Be nice,’” she says. “ I was very nervous,” says Green, “I didn’t know anyone at her birthday party. And as much as I’m social, I can definitely have shy moments. I definitely paced outside of the house for a little bit. Okay, I’m about to meet all of her friends and family. And we’d gone on what, two dates, at this point?” There was no reason for concern. Green charmed Jones-Wesley’s family, who welcomed him with open arms. After that, they were officially a couple. They traveled to Montana for a friend of Green’s wedding, and his mom was one of the guests. She was the first of his family to meet the woman who it was pretty clear had a hold on her son. By the end of August, Jones-Wesley had met more of Green’s family at several gatherings. “ I feel like there was just this momentum building,” Green said. “Of my conviction, plus all this external validation from everyone who cares about me validating [her]. By mid-September I [knew] yeah, this is the girl I’m gonna marry.” “We had a really good first summer falling in love,” Jones-Wesley says. Jones-Wesley, 33, is Black. A former Miss Santa Monica, she’s originally from Rancho Cucamonga, she’s been living in Los Angeles since 2015, where she is a content creator and digital marketing strategist. Green, 34, is Jewish and from Potomac, Maryland. He came to California in 2018 to start a tech company, Meso, which builds marketing software. “Super cool AI technology for big companies,” Green says. When the couple decided to get married, it was essential to them that their wedding reflected the totality of who they were. “ I think cultural identity is probably pretty embedded into both of our upbringings,” says Green. “ When we talked about raising kids in the future and how we’re gonna integrate our cultures, we wanted that to start from the earliest days of our lifetime together.” They were married under a chuppah, acknowledging Green’s Jewish culture. In Judaism, the chuppah, a canopy with open sides, symbolizes the home the couple will build together, under the shelter of God. The couple also incorporated the African American tradition of jumping the broom. In the 18th and 19th century, this was a way for enslaved couples to signify their union to each other, when they could not be married legally. Jones-Wesley’s sister and her husband jumped the broom at their wedding a decade ago. “ I was like, okay. I would kind of want to do that as well,” Jones-Wesley said. “When Nathaniel was talking about all of the ways to add Jewish culture into the wedding, I started thinking, we will probably do some stuff that’s Christian, too. But I also feel very culturally that being a black woman, there’s just things that exist as black American culture. I come from a family that’s a descendant of slaves. And so being black and Black American in that way is actually a very important part of my identity.” Their ceremony included a Christian prayer, led by Jones-Wesley’s cousin. A friend of Green’s explained the significance of the chuppah. The couple were married by a mutual friend who became an officiant, and “has this really great speaking voice,” said Jones-Wesley. At their reception, the couple found a dance mix to the traditional “Hava Nagila,” a Jewish folk song that roughly translates to “let us rejoice.” That served as the backdrop of the Jewish horah, a dance where the couple is lifted in chairs above their guests. That dance segued into a Soul Train line that officially opened the dance floor for the evening. “And boy, did it!” said Jones-Wesley. “ People didn’t stop dancing the entire night. It literally went from, ‘Oh, this is a nice little wedding into a full-fledged party that lasted until the DJ kicked people off the dance floor.” The couple honeymooned in Sri Lanka, adhering to a couple of rules Jones-Wesley set out. It had to be a place Green had never been, there had to be great weather and she wanted to be in a swimsuit. The trip blended the relaxation of a beach retreat with cultural and food offerings, including their stay at a hotel known for its farm-to-table experience. They got to see tea cut and hand rolled. The yogurt they ate in the morning came from cows on the property. The trip culminated with a safari, where they saw leopards. But the best part of it all, they agree, was being able to build new traditions after fusing their own cultures together, helping them to create a fresh foundation for their life ahead. Vendors Catering: Calamigos Ranch Decor: Erin Jones-Wesley DJ: Blitz Nation Florals: Erin Jones-Wesley Photography: Lulan Studios Onsite Coordination: One Darling Day
