The speeches are available in mp3 format for all those that would like to listen to them again. Thanks again for everyone who made a speech.
Jen Grey
Doug Caswell
Harold Oschner
Chuck Caswell
Jess and Rona
Amber VanDyk
Cathy Berglund
Jen Caswell
Craig Strukoff
Jon Arkell
Shell Arkell
Love is one of those wonderful elemental forces like electricity that is so much more visible by it's actions than it's appearance.
Love has the transforming energy - to take the ordinary,
the mundane and the trivial,
and elevate them to the extraordinary,
the incredible, the startingly significant.
When love touches our lives it seems gentle,
and yet has the strength
to turn everything we know upside down in an instant -
with the merest glance of an eye
or the touch of a hand.
Love cannot be seen, but it can be felt,
it has no substance and yet
it is one of the most powerful forces
that plays in our lives
When we lovers reach out for each other
we touch without words.
We hold hands in silence or talk of other things.
In the dark night when we caress, we do so with sighs and whispers,
kisses, and breathy exhalations of love.
We are in love with each other
and this is what it is like
or what it is like in words.
In all this...the love I know for you
changes shape every day,
eludes my grasp, with it's newness
and challenges my intellect, with it's depths of feeling.
I now know, I know nothing of love
except it's divine experience.
Boy that's tough to follow. I'm not sure I'm ready to carry on after that last presentation.
I'm Shelley's Uncle Doug and way back in the last century about 1968, I had a brand new girlfriend and I thought I had better introduce my girlfriend to my sister so off we went to sister Shirley's place. We got there and here was this little squalling, screaming bundle about three months old at the time, but before introductions were over, Shirley and the rest of the crew were off for an evening out and we were stuck babysitting. Well, we made it through, I think we even changed a couple of diapers and over time we ended up doing that on numerous occasions and spent many evenings and afternoons with Shelley and her family as she was growing through toddlerhood. Shelley and her brother Bill, they were quite a pair. The would constantly be dragging toys out and her mother would be saying no Shelley, only one toy at a time, she could only have one toy at a time. Of course Billy would be famous for taking those toys away from Shelley and that started a screaming match. I think that's about the time the name squeaky came into play. Squeaky was kind of a family, and I mean family, just mom and dad and Bill and those very close to her knew her by squeaky but thinking back she certainly was a squeaky little one. She was a tiny little girl with all her little blonde curls and she was just a bundle of love, always smiling. If you look at her daughter Jamie, that's pretty much what Shelley looked like when she was that age. Just a smiling, happy face all the time, but unfortunately time went on and Shelley turned into a teenager.
We didn't know Shelley too much through her teenage years. We went and moved away from Winnipeg and came out to Calgary. It was always a pleasure to have Shelley and her brother come out and spend a few days with us every couple of years. She was soon no longer a kid. Shelley was turning into a young lady and boy, I'm not sure whether I can continue on here so I'm going to turn it over to Uncle Harold who really had some time with Shelley as she matured through her late teenage years and into her early adulthood because as Harold will tell you, she used to spend some time with them up in High Prarie, so Harold...
As Doug mentioned we were living in High Prairie so it was a long way aways from Winnipeg, so we didn't really get to know her as a child or young girl. I didn't have to change any diapers on her, but one year she let us know she was going to come up and spend some time with us during the summer holidays.
We were excited because we only had one son and we wanted to spend some time with her and have a girl in our family. So we were really happy for her to come up and the day she came, well, we really had a big celebration. We had the school burn down right across the street. So Shelley spent all night watching the fires and had a great time there or maybe it was the firefighters, there were some young guys there too. Anyway, after that the house was never the same. It was always full, boy always coming there, I could never park in my driveway. There was always people there. Shelley was very popular. She moved on.
Next year she decided to come again. So, lo and behold, guess what burned down that time, the grain elevator. She had excitement again. It was getting to be a ritual, everytime she came there was a big fire. Anyways, she was back and the boys knew immediately that she was in town again, so there was the driveway filled up again. There was some other stories but I don't want to drag it out too long.
Shelley we were happy to have you up there and visiting us and we wish you the very best. Jon actually knows that we're kinda silly. Last weekend we had a little get-together so he all knows about us. Now I'll pass it over to her Uncle Chuck...
Well, I was asked to speak of the future. The only thing that came to mind was some advise that my father gave me, this I pass onto you Jon. He said, "If you want to see your wife in twenty years time, look at her mother." Jon, you've got it real good, you've got her daughter to look at to see her past. You've got her mother to look at to see what you have to look forward to. You've also got her grandmother who is a really wonderful person just like her mother and just like her. And that's all I'm going to say.
Jonnay, you the man. When you get to be as old as we are you know we gott know men. We've watched you grow a sweet boy to a man who stands with confidence. I guess all those tai chi badminton games at the apartment really paid off.
When Jess and I were asked to make this toast to you, Jess's first thought was, "What and honor," min was "Oh lord the pressure!" Then came the thought of what an honor it would be to tell everyone what a treasure and a blessing you have been in our lives.
Jonnay, you're our brother and our friend. You're one of the best things about this world. We knew you would find someone who thinks you are as incredible and special as we do and she would hang on and never let go. You have the wisdom and spirit to go forever. Seek new horizons. We love you. Congratulations.
I have my notes too, because without notes, I'm more than likely to drop into a little seminar on the Introduction to the Internet. I figure judging from the front row here, they didn't need it. Last night I was at Jon and Shell's, I kinda hinted at what I was going to say today, here I am with my speech in hand. I think judging from the pile of paper from my bed and my kitchen and my living room and my sofa, that this is probably draft seven or eight hundred. I'm somewhat unsure if I got it right, sometimes I think you should be allowed to write these after the ceremony so you can drop stuff in, but, we'll try anyway.
So I woke up first this morning to the beep and the grind of the garbage trucks and thought that was pretty ridiculous, so I grabbed the sense to shut the door and go back to bed. At a much more reasonable hour, this is kind of strange but it's a true story, I was awakened by the sound of a bell. It was one perfectly clear note, ping, that resonated throughout my apartment and sat in the air, with it's clean, simple sound. It was when I heard that, that I realized that this speech needed to be as simple and clear as the sound of the bell.
I first met Shell through someone we were both friends with. A texan named Josh that neither of us had ever met, who told me I needed to listen to the shoutcast by the girl that would say, "Aboot." And she did, and he taped it, and he loved it, and if things were different maybe he would be here but thankfully he's nut cause he's a bit nutty and married with children and that would be a whole other party wouldn't it. It wasn't long after I met Shell via the internet as most things happen these days it seems, that the girl that said "Aboot" over the internet that I didn't really know, found herself working with me at the mighty Cadvision. The rest they say is history. Now maybe that's fate, or kismit, or provendence, or predestination, or maybe the world works in mysterious ways, but the journey between that day and this day has been a long one. Friends have come and gone, jobs have changed and fear and intrepidation have been traded for success, love and comfort.
Each moment Jon and Shell have spent apart and then together have led them to this day. Today is what both of you will build your future on. Although we claim the world works in mysterious ways, it's days like today that make me doubt that there is any mystery in it at all, because there is no real mystery in how Jon and Shell made it here with all of us. Even though all of this wedded bliss may definitely seal my fate in the spinster hall of fame, Shell can explain that to you later, I still wish you all the best, all the happiness in the world for letting me be here with you guys today, and I love you both. Thanks.
My name is Cathy and I actually met Shell through Jonny but only because Shell introduced Jonny to a project or a company that we were working with. It's through that company that Jon and I have been working for about a year and a half, maybe a little longer, it seems longer. We have come through as an organization but also as individuals through alot. I saw Jon go from a young man who was a little bit lost and dealing with his mom's early death and I saw Shell support Jon through that and I think for them that was a real binding moment in their relationship. It was incredible to see them grow as a couple and it was incredible to see them both mature. I wasn't surprised when they got engaged and got married.
The last year and a half has been an incredible struggle in some ways but it's mostly been an incredible ride. We've joined as a family and a team on a personal level as well as a professional level. I'm very appreciative of Jon and Shell in my life.
I've learned incredible things about Hello Kitty, Badtz Maru, irc, the whole chat arena. I wasn't technically incompetant, but I was also introduced to a whole new very strange world and I'm starting to get the language down but sometimes when they are talking with their friends and I'm in the crowd, I kind of scratch my head and pick up a new word or two. I've learned alot about techno and on many of the nights where Jon and I are sitting down and Shell when we're working and I've actually caught myself tapping to the techno so I've kind of gotten adjusted to it, and actually enjoying it. Jon's music is quite incredible. That talent, we're even using in work as well.
I've really appreciated these two. We're going to have one heck of a ride together as friends and as a work team and congratulations.
Hi, I'm Jennifer. I'm Shelley's cousin and we have had alot of good and bad times together. For many of you that may not know this side of Shelley, she comes from an incredibly huge clan. There are alot of family members here today and we just wanted to take this moment to, well, welcome Jon to the family. We just wanted to welcome you to the family Jon and let you know that we love you and we embrace the two of you and we wish you a lifetime of happiness together. Thank you.
When Jonny and Squeaky asked me to do a speech for them, my first reaction besides the honor was kind of a low grade panic. They've done so much for me and they're such good friends that they're probably going to expect it to be good. I didn't think I was up to a full speech so I just wanted to propose a toast. Even that's pretty hard, I'd wish them luck but luck isn't what keeps a relationship together, believe me on this one. You meet out of all the people in the world, and fall in love, that's luck. I'd wish them all the best but, I've known them for a long time, they're good people, they've already found the best, in each other. So, all I want to say is, thanks guys, for being living proof that love's candle can burn twice as bright and twice as long.
Okay, so I'm like a big slacker. Shell asked all these people to do the speeches and she prepared most of the wedding so I'd like to thank her for that. She's done alot of the preparations and she's...my wife. I love her lots. I also say that I'm a slacker cause, you know, I didn't ask anyone. I didn't ask anyone I don't know, I'm just like that, I'm a slacker. So if anyone does want to do a speech then they are more than welcome to, open mic or whatever, but you don't have to and I guess, everyone just chill out and to Shell's family, I'm really glad that I'm part of your family, it's been nice. *mumble from crowd* Oh no, not more hamburgers, I thought I was done with that, so, it's been nice knowing you, I won't see you for the next fourteen years or so when that whole initiation thing is done, alright, but you really are nice people.
Well he forgot to mention how much we appreciate everyone coming out to join us for this day. (Jon: See, I'm a slacker, I always forget stuff) You slacker. I'd like to thank everyone in the wedding party and everyone that helped out. All the coolers that came out, I was really worried about that but we have excess, so that's great. There is a guest book we would like everyone to sign so if you could find you way to the guestbook today sometime before you leave and, thanks!
This one wasn't said at the wedding as she chickened out...but she put it up on her site and I would like to recognize it. :)
Even though I have only known you guys for a few years, the experiences are worth a life time. Both of you have taught me so much about music, people and life in general. You guys were the ones who got me into techno in the first place when I first heard Genesis309, you introduced me to a whole different crowd outside of the #Calgary channel, and I made some really good friends there. (Some enemies too but hey this is a happy speech.).I still remember the Oasis weekend. I know I wasn't there or anything but the long talks Shelley and I had about that weekend, How she thought she has scared Jon off for good. But you guys still came through it stronger then ever. To have known you guys from *almost* the begining of your relationship to this point and to watch you guys grow mentally and spiritually together has been a great honor:) If there ever was a couple deserving of each other it would be you guys. (And I don't mean that in a bad way :P) I am greatful to have been at the ceremony and to have witnessed your vows to each other. It gives me faith in life to see that no matter what is thrown into your path that love can survive anything. And you guys have proven this. Thank you for letting me be apart of that. I wish you the best of whatever life might bring your way.
Congrats!!