Carrie & Bryant
Wedding Party
Sarah M Ogle
Matron of Honor
Sarah & Carrie met 12 years ago when they both started at Equitable within 6 months of each other. Not immediately best friends, they came to know each other really well when they were basically the only females at the work conferences they attended! Their friendship has become famous for 5 hour dinners and legendary all-day shopping trips. Other memories include coasting down a mountain in California after running out of gas in a rental car, and getting entirely lost on the way to dinner in a strange town with two phones with dead batteries and no charging cords! Sarah is one of our Executive Vice Presidents at Equitable Advisors, and is married to Dustin Ogle. They have two adorable boys, Dylan & Cayson.
Dr. Rebekah Hartfield
Bridesmaid
Rebekah & Carrie met 12 years ago at a church function. They bonded over their sister stories (Rebekah has three sisters, Carrie has five) and also their homeschooled backgrounds.(NO ONE has better homeschool jokes than they do). The very first cutting horse show Carrie ever competed at, Rebekah was competing in too! They’ve had some hilarious trips together over the years and are looking forward to many more! (Bathhouse in Hot Springs, anyone?! ...Inside joke.... Rebekah is a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, owns her own clinic in Holdenville, OK. & also authors books for children. She is married to Preston Hartfield - their son Paden is the cutest cowboy in the entire state. Her books can be found at www.doctorhartfield.com
Heidi Terrell
Bridesmaid
Heidi & Carrie were inseparable through most of their growing up years on the family ranch in Nebraska. Together they doctored cows, built fence, repaired tractors, hunted possum (not successfully), and plotted to take over the world (still working on this one)! They each had a palomino mare, (Kid & Snip) who figured largely in their ranch adventures. When Heidi went to college, she invited Carrie to meet lots of her friends and hang out at some of the parties - which 14-year old Carrie thought was pretty cool! A better older sister no one has ever had. Heidi is married to Brock Terrell - they ranch & farm full-time in western Nebraska, and somehow also raise a tribe of great kids: Royal, Ragan, Eli, Ira, and little Reece.
Dr. Megan Hird
Bridesmaid
Megan is Carrie’s next-older sister and they still laugh about making up titles to Louis L’amour westerns when they were pairing out cows together on the ranch! “Shootout at Bare Rock Mesa!” That’s actually pretty good... Another source of laughter is their graduate school days (Megan in Iowa & Carrie in Texas) when $20 had to cover food costs for the entire week! They frequently bounce ideas off each other for various work situations they’re experiencing and also have lots to discuss about recent home purchases! Megan is a Doctor of Physical Therapy, practicing in Lincoln, NE. She is married to Aaron Hird and they have two awesome boys, Blane & Tilden.
Rachel Brownlee
Bridesmaid
Rachel is Carrie’s next-younger sister by 8 years - but has been taller than her since about age 12! When Carrie had her back accident at age 18, responsible Rachel (age 10 at the time) would come into her room every morning and help strap on Carrie’s back brace (her turtle shell) and help her out of bed. She was never late to arrive. Carrie & Rachel also shared their love of drawing horses - with the important difference that Rachel is actually very talented at it! Rachel is an incredible artist, does free-lance coding work, and also ranches with her husband, Ethan Brownlee in western Nebraska. They have one daughter, always-smiling baby Hedda. Her artwork can be found at www.rachelbrownlee.com or on Facebook, Rachel Brownlee Fine Art
Natalie Gessele
Bridesmaid
Sister Natalie is Carrie’s soulmate when it comes to chasing sunsets, and loving the “golden hour” of the day. They can play the card game of Blitz for hours, and usually trade the lead back and forth several times! Natalie is a deep thinker and always has wise words worth listening to - she is also a great partner on a road trip and has great taste in music! Natalie is married to Taylin Gessele and lives in Watford City, ND. She does scenic photography and is currently working on painting & fixing up their new house!
Sarah Ostrander
Bridesmaid
Sarah is Carrie’s youngest sister and frequent partner in crime for all sorts of shenanigans. Whether it’s estate sale hunting, spelunking through abandoned houses, or random road trips - she is always down for an adventure! She is also the only sister to attend a Rave with Carrie! A favorite memory is the day Carrie placed the famous Texas A&M “Aggie” ring on Sarah’s finger on her graduation day - both are graduates of Texas A&M. Whoop! Sarah is serving in her first year as a Specialist in the U.S. Army and is currently stationed at Fort Huachuca in Arizona.
Dushica Ostrander
Bridesmaid
Dushica is Carrie’s ONLY sister-in-law and is married to Carrie’s only brother, Jules. They met for the first time in 2015 when Jules invited the entire family to his wedding in Macedonia, where Dushica is from. Carrie has always thought how brave Dushica was to marry a man with six sisters! As all six girls rode down the escalator at the airport in Skopje for the wedding, waiting at the bottom was Jules & Dushica. Carrie was thinking, this must be some amazing girl if my brother wants to marry her...and she is! Dushica is married to Jules Ostrander and they live in Denver, CO. She works at Amazon and is a wonderful mother to Jules’ mini-me, Evan. They are expecting their second son in May 2021.
Brandon King
Best Man
Brandon King, the “Bestest” Best Man of the crew. Brandon is Bryant’s older brother of 4 years. Sadly Brandon passed away in 2009 and will be with us in spirit. Like all brothers, lot’s of fights, trouble making, and giving our parents grief! Brandon and I grew to be great friends and confided in one another immensely. I miss him every single day and wish that he could be here to be standing next to me. We all love you and wish that you were here Brandon!
Dr. Taylor Knight
Best Man
Taylor and I met the last semester of college ironically. Moved to Little Rock and lived together for a year while I pursued law enforcement and he was enrolled in Pharmacy school. Taylor and I have had some seriously good times together filled with side splitting laughter. Pool days, lake days, classic rock, dirty south rap, football tailgates, plenty of heated debates, float trips, and Waffle House trips while being dirt poor college/post college kids. Taylor met his much cooler than him wife, Jenny, in Pharmacy school. They have a beautiful little girl Kamryn (2). They reside in Centerton, AR.
Mathew Sanders
Best Man
Matt AKA “Colonel” Sanders. Wow...lot’s of shenanigans we have been through. Met freshman year of college at Southern Arkansas University in 2004. We lived together in college for a couple years, moved to LIttle Rock, AR, and also Dallas, TX. Our friendship has been full of painful laughter, and unbelievable memories. Matt has recently been married to the love of his life, Devin. They reside in Highlands Ranch, CO.
Jacob Mienk
Best Man
Jakey Dawg! Jake was my brother, Brandon’s best friend growing up. He has known me since diapers! Jake and Brandon used to beat me up constantly as the little brother that tried to fit in. Jake and I have formed a much stronger relationship since Brandon’s passing, we are very close! I am proud to consider Jake a brother. Jake has a wonderful wife, Teena, and two boys Nate (12) and Brandon (10). They reside in Frankston, TX.
Kenneth Coan III
Best Man
Kenny and I met in 2000, freshman year of high school. Kenny had moved to Gladwin, MI from Florida with his parents. We quickly became close friends through baseball. Twenty years later, hundreds of baseball games later, Kenny is a brother from another mother! Kenny’s mother Deann and father Kenny Jr are like an additional set of parents. Kenny has a wonderful wife, Jess and beautiful daughter Leah (6). They reside in Sterling Heights, Michigan.
Terry McDaniel
Best Man
T-Mac for short! Terry and I met in Little Rock, Arkansas while both in Police Academy in 2008/09 and have been great friends since. Terry has worked his way through the department to become officer of the year as one of the leading Homicide Detectives for the LRPD. Terry is a proud father of two awesome kids, Trey(8) and Layla (5). Terry resides in Little Rock, AR.
Dustin Hughes
Best Man
Dustin and I met in 2008 on the lake in Arkansas. Spent time wakeboarding, boating, and quickly became friends. We both share the same passion for all things boating, loud speakers, one-upping each other in every sense and never ending good times. Throughout the years our friendship has grown stronger dreaming about life, discussing business ideas, pushing each other to work out, and setting sailing trip goals! Dustin is a successful business owner in Texarkana, Texas. He resides in Ashdown, AR with his precious daughter, Ella Grace (8)
Kenny Head
Best Man
Kenny and I met five years ago while working together at Equitable Advisors in Dallas. Outside of work, Kenny and I became very close friends enjoying lake trips, poolside shenanigans, grilling, business talks, slow-pitch softball champions, and double dates with our ladies! We are often asked by many people if we are brothers, Kenny only wishes he was that cool. Kenny lives in Dallas, TX with his 6 pound Yorkie, Champ.
James “Mark” Brooks
Officiant
Mark is our fearless life insurance wholesaler at Equitable - We have have known Mark for approximately 6 years. He has been invaluable to our business growth, but has also become a really amazing friend and person in our lives. Lot’s of laughs, amazing dinners, endless stories, a few secrets, and memories to last a lifetime. One of Mark’s great goals is to hike all the major mountain peaks in the U.S, He only has one major high point peak left before conquering other mountains. Mark is married to the love of his life, Judith. They have two stellar kids Lee (24) and Melissa (22). They reside in Tomball, TX.
Jules R Ostrander
Bride’s Escort
Jules is Carrie’s only, favorite brother. He is six years her senior, and has always been one of the most important people in her life. In good times and challenging times, he has been Carrie’s constant source of encouragement and support. He is basically the best older brother any sisters could ever wish for. Jules has served in the U.S. Army for 20 years, starting in the 82nd Airborne division and later in the Special Forces as a Communication Specialist. His current rank is Master Sergeant and his title is Operations Sergeant - he plans & resources military training. He is married to lovely Dushica and they have one son, Evan. Their second son is due in May 2021.