Wheatley holds a special place in hearts of Detroit couple

By Mark Ribble

A Detroit couple is singing the praises of the Wheatley community after their wedding in the village on August 24.

Haley and Josias Yglesias, musicians and artists from southwest Detroit, spent time leading up to their wedding at the Yglesias family cottage along Lake Erie and what they saw from the community was nothing short of amazing.

Haley and Josias are high school sweethearts who’ve been together for 14 years and decided it was time to tie the knot this summer — and what better place than along the water in their favourite summer place.

The pair have been to Wheatley many times over the years and remember ordering pizza from the Car Barn, so they hired Barry and the Car Barn crew to provide the food for their wedding.

“Barry was awesome to deal with,” said Haley. “He’s the best caterer there is.”

And it didn’t stop there.

Haley explained that as musicians, they couldn’t carry a big budget and she was wanting to find some inexpensive flowers to decorate their cottage venue with.

“I love hydrangeas and I created a post on the Wheatley Community Facebook Page asking if anyone would be willing to part with some,” says Haley.

Haley said she had heard that if you cut hydrangeas, they will come back even bigger next year, so she was hoping to hear from someone offering her a few.

What she got was a flood of posts from “neighbours” saying they would gladly part with some. Soon — along with Josias’ mom Therese and aunts Deanie, Jeanie and Annie — Haley was out cutting and picking up flowers all over Wheatley.

They were able to get hydrangeas from Trevor and Michelle Bailey, Debbie Marshall and Gayle Hyatt and other neighbours pitched in with additional help.

“Our neighbour Courtney Reid offered to make my bouquet and it was beautiful,” said Haley. “And another neighbour — Blair and Linda — sent over chocolate-covered strawberries.”

The generosity shown by the community to two American kids asking a simple question on social media has left them speechless.

“It was so generous,” says Haley. “The way that Wheatley came together.”

Josias said he was thrilled with the response from the village, considering all that has happened in Wheatley the past couple of years, including the explosion and COVID restrictions, which kept them away from their cottage on the lake.

“It was really special to get back and see Wheatley through new eyes,” he said. “It was a perfect day.”

As they get on with their lives in Michigan, the pair will remember fondly all of the generous people of Wheatley, including local businesses who went above and beyond to ensure they had a memorable day.

“Thank you to the entire community,” added Haley. “We couldn’t be more thrilled.”