SALT LAKE CITY — When 33,000 gallons of Colorado crude oil broke loose from a Chevron pipeline two weeks ago, it swept a path of havoc and destruction from the edge of scenic Red Butte Garden miles west to the Jordan River.
Residents along Red Butte Creek and the Jordan River, as well as visitors to Liberty Park, saw firsthand what the thick, black petroleum can do to once-beautiful waterways.
And though the sludge carried away the dreams of dozens of young men and women, whose long-planned wedding celebrations in the idyllic Garden Park Ward were no longer tenable, a wish for one couple 50 years in the making finally became reality.
One-of-a-kind setting
Salt Lake City wedding planner Mara Marian calls the Garden Park site "one of the most beautiful spots in the city" for nuptial celebrations. The property has a history intertwined with that of the Mormon pioneers who settled the area in the mid-19th century.
The ornately landscaped grounds on Yale Avenue and just east of 1100 East straddle Red Butte Creek and include small bridges that crisscross the creek, a pond, tiled cupola and 150-year-old trees — all nestled next to the LDS meetinghouse built in 1938 and renovated in 2007.
The popularity of the setting for wedding celebrations grew to a point that, about a decade ago, events had to be limited to families who lived in the ward.
Among those lucky families is Stephanie Tibbs, 25, who never considered anywhere but Garden Park as the place where her big day would be celebrated.
"I've been dreaming of my wedding being there since I was a little girl," Tibbs said. "There was never a doubt in my mind."
All seemed to be in place for Tibbs to realize her childhood plans after friends introduced her to Kristjan Morgan, and love and wedding plans soon followed.
But sometime during the night of June 11, a quarter-sized breach in the 10-inch pipe that carries crude from Colorado to a Salt Lake City refinery started a chain of events that would prove the undoing of the Tibbs-Morgan wedding at Garden Park, as well as many others.
But one event seemed to have been kissed by destiny.
A wish unfulfilled
In 1960, another young bride-to-be had her sights set on a Garden Park wedding. Madeline Jones, of Clearfield, was engaged to marry her high school sweetheart, Wayne Barlow.
She also had long planned on her wedding taking place near burbling Red Butte Creek under the canopy of trees planted by Brigham Young and his descendants. She even picked a date, June 24, and reserved the grounds.
Those plans, however, were derailed when family members decided that asking guests to drive to the city would be too big an imposition.
The Garden Park reservation was canceled, and Jones and Barlow were married in Clearfield.
A few years after they married, they settled in the Cache County town of Providence, and Wayne Barlow, a Utah State University-educated engineer, returned to his alma matter as a teacher. They raised eight children together and are now the grandparents of 22.
Through all those years, Madeline's dream of a Garden Park wedding still remained.
A change of plans
Three days after oil coursed down Red Butte Creek, Tibbs got a call from the events coordinator for the Garden Park Ward.
"They told me about what happened," she said. "I was so upset, I couldn't talk on the phone and had them call my mom."
Tibbs said she felt like things were "crashing down around her," and she didn't know where to turn with only days remaining until her wedding.
Her mother, Diana Tibbs, was assured by ward staff that Chevron was ready to deal with relocating events scheduled at Garden Park, and the family was referred to Marian, the planner acting as a liaison for displaced brides.
"Once I talked to Mara, I felt a lot better," Stephanie Tibbs said. "I realized it could all still work out."
Marian said Chevron asked her to coordinate the new wedding sites for the Garden Park couples, and the company stepped up to cover all expenses involved with having the events moved.
For Tibbs, Marian suggested relocating to the Grand America. They had an opening on her chosen wedding day, and the event could still be held outside. The granite walls of the hotel had a remarkable resemblance to the Salt Lake Temple, where Tibbs wed Morgan Friday.
Though Marian was juggling multiple weddings because of the oil accident, she was able to bring it all together for the Tibbs-Morgan wedding.
On the day before the ceremony, Tibbs was feeling much better.
"I'm fine now," she said Thursday. "It's all about perspective. It's not all the fluffy stuff that makes the wedding. … That's not what makes it special."
A will and a way
The children of Wayne and Madeline Barlow knew all about their mother's unfulfilled dream of a wedding reception at Garden Park.
In 2000, there was talk among the siblings about holding the couple's 40th anniversary celebration at Garden Park. Unfortunately, that was about the time events at the garden became limited to residents of the ward. Ten years later, however, a new plan emerged.
"We had a talk with the bishop and worked out a way to do it," Jeffrey Barlow said.
That plan required the family to rent a residence inside ward boundaries to meet the requirements for Garden Park events. Months before the Barlows' 50th anniversary, Jeffrey Barlow did just that and was able to reserve the grounds for June 24 — 50 years to the day after his mom's reservation.
Then, as the date for the long-delayed garden reception neared, oil clogged the creek running through Garden Park.
"We were worried," said daughter Angell Monjar. "But somehow, we knew it would come together."
A perfect day
On Friday, the freshly betrothed Kristjan and Stephanie Morgan were being led around the ground floor of downtown's Grand America Hotel by Marian, a wedding photographer and a few family members, finding spots for photos. The new Mrs. Morgan, in a beautiful cream gown, was smiling.
"It's been a great day," she said. "It all came together."
In Grand America's main courtyard, hotel employees were putting the finishing touches on the flowered tables and silver-laden buffet. The setting looked like something out of a dream.
As guests began arriving, they too, were wowed by the glitzy upgrade, fine linens and shrub-lined paths in the courtyard. It seemed as though everything happened as planned, and among the flowing fountains and decked-out catering staff, a hint of music in the air — the newest Morgan stood proudly.
A life together
For the celebration of 50 years with his bride, Wayne Barlow decided it wasn't enough to just have a party. He was going to go all the way.
"I got a ring, and I got down on my knees," Barlow said. "And I proposed again."
All was in place for the Barlows.
More than a week after the spill, visual evidence of the accident had virtually disappeared. But just two days before the event, the strong smell of kerosene still permeated the grounds of Garden Park.
"We had family members checking on things every day," Monjar said. "Each day it seemed to get a little better. … We didn't stop hoping."
That hope held out, and on Thursday evening there was virtually no sign — and no lingering smell — of the spill less than two weeks earlier.
Madeline Barlow had a tear in her eye that night when she talked about her longtime wish finally granted.
"It is a dream come true," she said. "A 50-year-old dream come true."
Contributing: Wendy Leonard
e-mail: araymond@desnews.com