Cate Edwards, the daughter of former presidential candidate John Edwards and the late Elizabeth Edwards, married college sweetheart Trevor Upham yesterday.
The couple wed beside an altar candle lit in her mother's memory.
After the ceremony, they welcomed friends and family into the sprawling Edwards home in Chapel Hill, N.C., where they mourned Elizabeth's death from breast cancer 10 months ago. John Edwards hosted the reception on the lawn.
"We want this to be really happy and joyous; that's what my mother would want," Cate Edwards said before the wedding at the Chapel Hill United Methodist Church.
"There are a lot of sort of small ways that she's infused into the day," added Cate, 29, who got engaged to Upham, 30, her boyfriend at Princeton, late last year.
For Mr. and Mrs. Trevor Upham, the day was one they will never forget, and came as a welcome respite from the turmoil her life has seen over the past few years.
First, her mother's breast cancer returned and spread, and then her father was forced to admit an affair with Rielle Hunter that produced a daughter, Quinn, now 3.
The cover-up of that affair with campaign money during John Edwards' presidential run led to criminal charges; he has pleaded not guilty in federal court.
But Saturday was for celebration and Cate's young siblings - Emma, 13, and Jack, 11, who still live with their father - were given prominent roles in the event.
Emma was maid of honor, while Jack, in a tux his father took him to rent, was a groomsman. "They had a tough year, but they're doing well," says Cate.
Cate's brother Wade died in an accident at age 16 in 1996.
Meanwhile, close friend Jennifer Palmieri said the whimsical and sentimental Elizabeth could be felt everywhere in her elder daughter's and Trevor's shining day:
"It's like every song is Elizabeth's song, every flower is Elizabeth's flower."
A licensed attorney, Cate left her Washington, D.C., law firm earlier this year to launch an educational nonprofit, the Elizabeth Edwards Foundation.
Trevor is a surgical oncology fellow at the National Cancer Institute. After a two-week tropical honeymoon, they will continue to reside in Washington, D.C.
Congratulations to the happy couple!!