“Displaced” sometimes translates to a fairytale ending!

Weddings are the stuff of which dreams are made for every grown up little girl.  Ideally, the venue is chosen a year in advance and the bride and her family spend that year setting all the fun, entertaining, touching, thoughtful and beautiful details into place.  Sometimes, however, things go unexpectedly awry and the bride becomes what is known in the wedding industry as ‘displaced’.

Rachel Bethmann is such a bride, having planned for her dream wedding to be held in Florida on the beaches of Pensacola.  We all know what is happening in the Gulf of Mexico with the BP Oil Spill catastrophe, and how it is affecting once pristine beaches.  Up until approximately six weeks prior to their wedding date of August 8th, 2010, Rachel and her fiance’ Aaron Clark (both University of Tennessee graduates) were hopeful that their particular location would escape the oil spill fallout.  Unfortunately, as the spill went on longer and longer, the couple had to face the harsh fact that their dream beach wedding venue was going to have change to another location.

Fortunately, Rachel and her mother, Ginger Bethmann had made the rounds in 2009 of several bridal shows and stopped at the Castleton Farms booth to meet and chat with the various Preferred Vendors and Darla Walker, Castleton’s Executive Director.  Hoping against hope that their wedding date might be available, Rachel and her mom contacted Darla and the unbelievable happened.  Darla and Castleton Farms extended an unheard of kindness by offering the venue free of charge.  Several of the Castleton Preferred Vendors followed suit and offered free services, while others offered services at steeply discounted prices. 

Rachel and Aaron’s wedding will be set in the fairytale setting of the gracious grounds of  Castleton Farms (photo gallery) the weekend of August 8th, 2010 and the theme is a vineyard summer holiday type of feel, to take advantage of some of the beachy theme of Rachel’s original plans.  Perhaps one of the most touching vendor offers is that of fireworks being produced by co-owners Steve Gamble and Dana Coleman of Pyro Visions (aka Pyro Creations), free of charge.  Rachel always dreamed of fireworks at her night time reception and Steve and Dave have created a spectacular display for the evening of fireworks and sky lanterns to put the perfect finishing touch on the festivities.

This is only the beginning of many special details that Darla Walker and Castleton Farms have gone beyond that proverbial extra mile to provide Rachel and Aaron with a wedding ceremony and reception to match the most wonderful daydreams of any feminine heart.  Stay tuned for more details of this lovely ceremony in future blogs!

Wedding saved by local Merchants!!

Have you ever heard of a luxury wedding ceremony at a dreamlike venue being offered free of charge?  Sometimes, in unusual circumstances, dreams still can come true, and Castleton Farms has stepped in to wave that proverbial magic wand. What does a young bride do when faced with an environmental disaster mere weeks before her [...]

Wedding Websites

A great way to keep your friends and family updated on your wedding progress is to create your own personal wedding website. Here you can also share engagement photos, stories of how you met, and vital wedding day information. Castleton Bride Henrietta Balint created a great example for her special day which you can see [...]

Castleton in the News

Today at 4pm tune in to channel 8 WVLT to see Castleton Farms very own Darla Walker in an exclusive interview.

Castleton Farms Offers More

Castleton Farms now has 4 different venues to choose from for your special event. They vary both in style and size to fit your occasions own personality. The Manor, as the first thing one sees when driving up the treelined entry to Castleton, is the crown of our venue. It has 4 spacious guestrooms, a [...]

Castleton Congratulates Josh and Amanda

Castleton Farms would like to congratulate Josh and Amanda Maddox, who were wed Saturday, July 17.  Their rehearsal dinnner was the premier event to be held in newly renovated Carriage House. For this they chose a traditional shrimp boil theme catered by Bayou Bay. Josh and Amanda chose the vineyard for their ceremony location. Always [...]

Lighting Up Castleton

Tru Grip and Lighting, a preferred Castleton Farms vendor, is a Knoxville business specializing in lighting and sound for local events. They have been working here this week constructing top notch lighting effects of a wedding weekend. While it may take a few days to set up for this event, they only had to begin [...]

Planning Makes Perfect!

Planning a wedding can be stressful, however with a little organization and the right team it can be really fun. Castleton Farms staff along with their years of experience in wedding planning are excited to help their brides plan an unforgettable event. Pictured below is Castleton Bride Autumn Baxter, working with Darla Walker of Castleton [...]

Ashlynn and Aaron Experience Castleton

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Castleton Congratulates Kristian and Bradley

Castleton Farms was proud to serve as the venue for Kristian and Bradley Cooper, who were wed on Saturday, June 26, 2010. The ceremony was held in the Bridal Pavilion followed by a reception in the tented Pavilion. As a unique touch on their celebration the newlyweds made donations to a local animal shelter for [...]