The Wedding Story of... Deborah Hearst & Whitney Derendinger

From the Heart

SEE WHAT HAPPENS

Deborah Hearst was taking improv classes at IO (Improv Olypmpics) in Chicago when the opportunity arose to attend a birthday party for Whitney Derendinger, another fellow actor.  Hearing of the invite, Deb excitedly turned to her friend, Libby, saying, “That’s the guy that every time I see I like.  Let’s go and see what happens.”

One birthday party and karaoke night later, it was now Whitney leaning to his friend, Andy, confessing, “I think I’m going to be seeing a lot more of Deborah.”

NEVER APART

For his proposal, Whitney compiled an album of photographs of their journey so far together. As she flipped through photos of their courtship and all the wonderful places they’d been, Whitney said, “Once you’ve been to so many places with someone, you realize you never want to be anywhere without them.  Will you marry me?”

THE BEAUTY OF NATURE

The couple loves spending time together outdoors and soaking in the beauty of nature. Therefore, it only seemed “natural” that the wedding theme would be related to nature and their affection of Lake Michigan. It was an education and a fun, familiar comfort to seek out potential venues along the lakefront.

REPAIRING THE BROKEN

“In Judaism, we are taught that it is our responsibility to repair some aspect of the world that is broken. And we take that very seriously. We learned through the wedding process how much opportunity there was for waste and we wanted to reduce this as much as possible,” Deborah noted.

Mindful, eco-friendly preparations and ideas included:

•From save-the-dates, to invitations, to wedding day programs, Deborah and Whitney made them all out of recycled and “tree-free” paper.
•The save-the-dates included seeds, so guests were encouraged to plant the entire card to grow a patch of wildflowers.
•All of the flowers were donated to a hospital after the wedding celebration.
•The chuppah “tree of life” became a wall-hanging over the bed of the newlyweds.
•Although yet to be completed, the table linens will be used to create a patchwork quilt for the newlyweds.

TREE OF LIFE

Deborah’s Jewish heritage requires a chuppah (canopy) for ceremonial proceedings. With nature as her inspiration, Deborah desired to take on a great challenge to not only make the fabric chuppah by hand, but also have it resemble the great “tree of life.”

FROM THE HEART

When asked what bonds the two of them together, Deborah explains, “A love and appreciation for humanity and the human spirit is essential to artists. As actors, we share this love and appreciation. And what makes Whitney such a good actor is that he acts with his heart.” While it can be argued love is a feat of prudent improvisation, which Whitney and Debra have mastered, it is without a doubt the wedding was meticulously and thoughtfully planned by two actors who know how to put on a show...from the heart.