Kelly Howard & John Gottsacker
Kelly Marie Howard and John Stephen Gottsacker exchanged wedding vows on Saturday, March 27, 2021 at Highland Park Presbyterian Church. Reverend Nelson Bell officiated the ceremony. The bride is the daughter of Ms. Kayla Rose Howard of Dallas, Texas and Mr. Robert Storz Howard of Omaha, Nebraska. The groom is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Phillip Gottsacker of Dallas.
For her wedding dress, Kelly wore an elegant gown by Sareh Nouri from Stanley Korshak Bridal Salon. Crafted of silk shantung, the gown’s natural waist was accented with a pleated cummerbund, v-neckline and a v-back. The cathedral length train was adorned with silk buttons to the end of the train.
Kelly wore the family heirloom veil which belonged to John’s grandmother, who purchased it in Bruges, Belgium. John’s sisters wore it when they married and the veil will continue to be passed down in the Gottsacker family.
Assisting the bride were Kelly’s cousins, Ashley Schempp as Maid of Honor and Kelsey Coleman as Matron of Honor. Bridesmaids included Kelly’s sister-in-law, Katie Howard and John’s sisters, Georgia Gandino and Margaret Tyler along with Caitlin Barberio, Lauren Chisholm, Alison Coyle, Helen Crain, Kia Igel, and Stefanie Morris. Kelly’s goddaughter, Charlotte Coleman, and John’s niece, Eleanor Gandino, were the flower girls.
Attending the groom as Best Man was his brother, Mark Gottsacker. Groomsmen were Todd Howard, Justin Gandino, Victor Tyler, Charles Branch, Cody Crews, Charles Foose, Rockton Linton, James McIlhenny, James Nolan IV, Nicholas Ramsey, William Winters, and Mitchell Zlotnik. William Howard, Austin Miller, Gregory Phelps, and Taylor Wilson served as ushers.
Following the wedding ceremony, the newlyweds welcomed guests to a reception at The Dallas Country Club. Kelly and John’s first dance was to “All Your’n” by Tyler Childers. John’s longtime hobby is race car driving so Kelly surprised John by having their guests wave small Nascar flags along with tossing white rose petals as the newlyweds made their getaway to a white 1960 Bentley.
Kelly is a graduate of Westside High School in Omaha, Nebraska. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology from Texas Christian University and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Creighton University. Kelly works as a registered nurse.
John is a graduate of Highland Park High School. He received a Bachelor of Business Administration in Energy Commerce from Texas Tech University. John is employed by Shell Oil Company in Crude Oil Trading.
After a honeymoon to Antigua, the couple has made their home in Midland, Texas.
