Jackson Free Press

If you are a fan of local music in Jackson, you probably know Valley Gordon and Taylor Hildebrand. Not only are they great musicians, but they also create community all around them. Valley and Taylor’s wedding didn’t just show their love for each other, it showed the love that was so obviously and abundantly overflowing both for and from their family and friends when they tied the knot at Camp Bratton Green outside Canton, on Nov. 10.

Valley’s love of traditional music exposes the beauty of an old soul hidden within a young and vibrant woman and mother. And if you’ve ever heard Taylor’s album, “Nena,” you can hear in those songs the story of family, loss and of love. Having met while playing in and around Jackson, Gordon and Hildebrand began a friendship based on a mutual love of music, family and Mississippi. As their friendship grew, they continued to create and build that love and community. It’s the appreciation of the beauty that comes from intertwining history, culture and sentimentality that shows through every part of what it means to know Valley and Taylor and was evident in every part of their wedding.

The location of the nuptials, Camp Bratton Green, was no surprise as Valley and Taylor’s history intertwined at that very site even before they knew one another. Both their fathers grew up across the street from the camp. Valley spent summers there as a child and continued the tradition by sending her daughters years later.

But the connection to Camp Bratton Green doesn’t end there. Patrick Sanders, an Episcopal priest and long-time friend of Taylor’s (who would later officiate their wedding) invited Valley and Taylor to be involved with a week at camp dedicated to the needs of handicapped adults—Valley as camp nurse and Taylor as musician. During this time, Valley and Taylor deepened their friendship sitting by the lake in the same “outdoor chapel” that they would be married in almost three years later.

Valley and Taylor brought together the history and the beauty of what Camp Bratton Green means to them by helping every guest remember what it felt like being a kid again at summer camp, with bicycles, canoes and even a teepee. Upon arrival, love and friendship was made tangible, from the mason jar candles friends hung from trees around the camp to the handmade trivets from an old tree in Valley’s parents’ yard.

Wedding coordinator Kendall Poole met Valley when they were 3 years old, while Hollie Hull, Valley’s best friend since college, played double duty as bridesmaid and wedding photographer. Bradley Adair shared his unique blend of thoughtful design and simplicity as reflected in the beauty of the altar, glass and light brought to life by Gaylen Ragen. Robbie Piantanida, who also produced Taylor’s video for his solo album, “Nena,” captured the day on video while local photographers and friends Laura Meek, Josh Hailey and Frank Ezelle captured the day’s vintage feel on both digital and film cameras.

Friends and family lined the aisles to watch the couple say their vows next to the water, perfectly timed at sunset, while local musicians Jamie Weems, Jesse Copenberger and Tyler Kemp played “Mother Nature’s Son,” “Be Thou my Vision” and “You are My Sunshine.” Valley walked down the aisle to Neil Young’s “Harvest Moon,” the first record the couple listed to when they started dating. They both knew immediately and without hesitation that it was their song.

After saying, “I do,” and being officially pronounced as husband and wife, the couple ran down the aisle and into a canoe ready for their first adventure as husband and wife. They enjoyed a sunset canoe ride to a floating dock on the lake where they shared a picnic and Champagne toast.

During the reception, guests enjoyed the music of jazz trio Tyler Kemp, Hagen Curl and Josh Lee. Drinks were laid out in canoe filled with ice and the “groom’s cake” turned into a late-night s’mores table complete with a built-in firepit for roasting marshmallows. The father of the bride served his award-winning jambalaya in more than 100 cast-iron skillets borrowed from family and friends.

When the sun went down, DJ Young Venom kept the celebration going late into the night. As the party came to a close, the couple invited guests to stay in camp cabins as they gathered with friends and family around the campfire, instruments in hand, singing and sharing together what would only be the beginning of the communal love they will live together.

Melody Moody met Valley in 2006 when they learned of their mutual love of the banjo and old-time music. Melody and Valley have been playing music together ever since in local bands including the Hot Tamales, Little Miss So and So, the Untitled Melody Project and The Scramblers. (see http://www.jfp.com/valleyandmelody).