July 12th witnessed the marriage of a couple with long-time Orcas Island connections.

The groom, Erin Clark, is the son and stepson of islanders Debbie and Nick Exton and grandson of Elizabeth Waterman.

The bride, Morgan Quinn, is the daughter of part-time Orcas residents Mary Mudd Quinn and Jeff Quinn, and the niece of islander Jimi Mudd.

Erin’s father and stepmother, Terry and Marty Clark of Denver, were also in attendance.

The joining together of the Clark/Exton and Quinn/Mudd families was heralded with good humor by some as the “island merger of the century.”

The couple was married at the Wareham’s Beach House adjacent to West Sound Marina. Morgan’s two daughters, Emma and Annie, joined in the ceremony standing by their mother and Erin as they exchanged vows.

In all respects it was an island-grown celebration starting with music by Almost Classical. Appetizers included oysters from Buck Bay Farms cooked on Johnny Mudd’s smoker and spot shrimp caught off Jones Island by the bride’s father. Maple Rock Farms catered oven-cooked pizzas and garden salad for the main course. The flowers were grown on Decatur Island by the groom’s aunt Sarah Berkshire and the Grange provided the picnic tables.

Perhaps there was something predestined to this union. In 1973 the bride’s mother Mary left her teaching job in San Diego to take a position at the Orcas School.  She replaced the retiring Margaret Exton, mother of Nick and Norm Exton and step-grandmother of the groom.  Margaret had taught at the school for more than 30 years and is well remembered by many Islanders.

The bride said, “In a way my becoming part of the Clark/Exton clan brings my mother’s connection to the wonderful Margaret Exton full circle.”