By Judy Clabes
NKyTribune editor
The baby born to the famous couple in our Governor’s Mansion grew up to be a famous TV journalist is coming back to her Old Kentucky Home for a fairy-tale wedding to the man of her dreams.
Pamela Brown will marry Adam Wright in early June (of course) at the Cave Hill Place, the home where she grew up in Lexington.
The daughter of former Governor John Y. Brown and TV sports journalism Phyllis George Brown was born just before her dad left office in 1983. He was Kentucky’s 55th governor.
Pamela Ashley Brown has grown up before our eyes, the spitting image of her famous mom, pursuing her own career in television journalism after earning her journalism degree from the University of North Carolina.
Through a friend, she met Adam Wright, who grew up in Kansas and found his way professionally to California. The met on a blind date — and the rest, as they say, was magic. Wright has relocated to D.C. where Brown is justice correspondent for CNN.
He gave her an engagement ring in September.
“My wedding coordinator is Sarah Leer,” Brown said. “She has been absolutely amazing helping me plan my wedding remotely from Washington, DC.”
Brown is putting a lot of her friends — and family — to work. Dad arranged for the ice cream — and the bugler and scouted out some other vendors. Mom consulted on the dress and is backing up on details. Lifetime and college friends have been recruited as bridesmaids . . .plans are in full swing.
She is, in short, having the wedding of her dreams.
“It’s all so much fun because my mom and I have talked about what kind of wedding I will have for so many years — and now we get to make it a reality together,” she said.
Brown started with the dress.
“My wedding dress is by Romona Keveza, and I was fortunate enough to find it in less than an hour,” she said. “I FaceTime’d with my mom after I tried it on. She shed tears of joy, and that’s when I knew I found the right one.”
Her mom has played a very active role in the planning, having hosted many parties at Cave Hill.
“I do not know what I would be doing without her help,” says Brown. “She knows exactly what she is doing. She is so detail oriented and has wonderful taste and ideas, so I’m leaving a lot of the event design to her.”
Her famous dad will be walking her down the aisle — and can’t wait. He’s an especially proud dad, too.
“What I enjoy most about Pam’s rising career in such a public venue is that she’s never at any point taken herself too seriously,” says her dad. “Just working hard and enjoying the ride. She throughout has made good choices and has a clear vision for her career that makes her parents feel secure as well as excited. Is there anthing better for a father than watching his little girl perform on national TV everyday explaining what going on around the world.”
Dad says he thinks she made a good choice in her groom as well.
And to round out the special family occasion, her older brother Lincoln will be the officiant.
“It’s a special touch,” she says. “I just hope he can hold it together up there.”
Pamela will have two matrons of honor – Kentucky native Cammie Atkins, her best friend since childhood, and Lindsay Miller, her freshman-year roommate at UNC.
There will be five other bridesmaids, friends from UNC and Kentucky: Ashley Goodspeed, Lauragail Smith, Stephanie Molster, Laura Covington, Abbay Curtis.
The whole affair will have a distinctive Kentucky flavor:
* New York-based musical artist Karen Marie Richardson will perform during the reception and a bluegrass band will play during the ceremony “for a true Kentucky feel;”
* Bluegrass musician Danny Williams will play during the ceremony.
* Freelance CNN makeup artist Yasmeen Ibrahim will do hair and makeup;
* The caterer is Cooper Vaughan with the Apiary, and “we are working with him to have traditional Kentucky fare for our guests;”
* LV Harkness is helping with invitations and event design;
* The cake will be provided by the Sugar Forest and we will also have ice cream from Crank and Boom;
* The event design and flowers will be provided by Elizabeth Hemphill with Rose and Thistle.
* The rehearsal dinner will be at the Hunt Club, and Kentucky based bluegrass band, The Wooks, will be performing.
The couple expect to continue to live in D.C.
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You may also be interested in the NKyTribune’s story Pamela Brown, baby in Governor’s Mansion