As most of you know, I love to write. I also love speech writing. It’s one of my favorite things. A lot of people asked me for my wedding speech to Cole and Brooke, so here it is.

Aloha Mai Kākou,

What an honor it is to stand here today in the presence of so much love!

Not just the love between Cole and Brooke,

but the love that fills this land, from everyone who came to witness their union and cheer them on.

Today, I’m not just speaking as a proud mom, I’m speaking as someone in awe of what you’ve both built, who you’ve become, and the love you share.

Cole and Brooke, your story is one rooted in resilience. You are Maui kids, born of saltwater and sunshine, with a spirit that refuses to be broken. You are Lahainaluna graduates, raised in a town that now lives in memory and in heart. And even as the landscape changed, your love only grew stronger—rooted, anchored, unshakable.

To me, you will always be Lahaina royalty.

Shortly after the fire, I found myself thinking about how long you’d been together, where life was leading you, and, honestly, what Cole’s intentions were. I didn’t want him wasting Brooke’s time. I decided I was going to ask him about it the very next morning. Well, the next morning I woke up to a text from Cole: “I want to ask Brooke to marry me.”

Great minds think alike.

Brooke: I am the happiest mother alive because of you. You make my son so happy! That’s all a mom could ever want. I’m so grateful you’re my daughter-in-law. I love you as my own. Thank you for loving Cole wholeheartedly… for not making him throw away his stuffed animals… and for accepting his raptor sounds. You are the love of his life, and he’s a better man because of it. He has attended the Stephanie Dow School of Husbandry and, thankfully, he graduated. So, you should be in good hands.

Marriage is an adventure. And while I’ve learned a thing or two about dirt bikes and surfing from Cole, I’ll say this: love is the best ride of them all.

And as you know, Life will hand you wipeouts—But it will also give you overhead glassy sets that make your heart race and your spirit rise. There will be hard paddle-outs, days when the current pushes against you and you wonder if you’ll make it. (Think Paia Bay.)

But if you keep paddling together, eyes on the horizon and hearts locked on each other, you’ll always make it through.

Cole, I held your hand through scraped knees, broken bones, and two wave hold-downs. And now, you and Brooke have become the ones teaching us.

There comes a moment when the student becomes the teacher.

And here we are.

You’ve built something strong and real, and we’re so lucky to witness it. Through it all, the key is what you two already do so beautifully: support each other, respect each other, and never lose that spark that brought you together in the first place.

We are your people. We will always be your people. You’ve got a wild, adoring, loyal crowd behind you. Your number one fans, forever.

And today, this love, this celebration, this moment.

This is your reward. You earned it. You built it.

And we’re all here simply to say:

We see you. We’re proud of you. We love you.

E hoʻomau ʻolua i ke aloha.

May you two continue in love.

Ha‘aheo au iā ‘oe — I am proud of you.

E ola mau ka inoa ‘ohana — may the family name live forever.

Sent from my iPhone