A Family Affair at the Ivy House

Joseph Picchetti and Madelyn Yee have a love of plays to thank for their kismet meeting while studying theater at Marquette University in 2010. Over the next nine years, the couple’s love grew, and marriage became the inevitable next step. But, Joe still managed to surprise Madelyn with his proposal. While visiting Chicago, he popped the question at their hotel after they had spent the day wandering around the city. “He proposed perfectly and simply, just the two of us,” Madelyn says. On their wedding day, Joe’s green tux made a statement against the palette of orange, gold, red and pink. Paying homage to Madelyn’s Chinese heritage, a modified Chinese tea ceremony was performed, as tea was served to the parents and the bride’s grandma before couple exchanged vows. The groom’s roots were also recognized as his mom read an Irish blessing. Although Joe’s father passed in 2020, “Every time I got unexpectedly nervous, I felt him telling me that everything would be just fine,” Joe says. As guests filtered out, a small group remained. “Dancing with that group was so quintessentially us,” Madelyn said, “and I wouldn’t trade that for anything in the world.”