Melissa Shultz, daughter of William and Florence Shultz of Chesterfield, and Brian Waeckerle, son of William and Lisa Waeckerle of Chesterfield, were married Oct. 29, 2022 at The Ritz-Carlton in Clayton. Rabbi Daniel Bogard officiated. 

Melissa is the granddaughter of the late Irving and Irma Shultz of Leawood, Kan., and the late Frank and Carolyn LaPlaca of Chicago.

Brian is the grandson of the late William and Ann Waeckerle of St. Louis, and the late Robert and Betty Lee Hickok of St. Charles.

Brian and Melissa both grew up in Chesterfield no further than a 10-minute drive from each other’s houses. Attending different Parkway schools, it wasn’t until they both attended the University of Missouri that their paths would cross for the first time.

Melissa caught Brian’s eye the first time they met their junior year of college as Melissa’s red Mitsubishi Outlander slid helplessly down a hill in front of her apartment during a snowstorm. He and his friends leaped into action and stopped her from crashing into another car. Not knowing this would be the first encounter with the person they would spend the rest of their lives with, the two continued on with their pursuits in a Bachelor of Civil Engineering, and a Bachelor’s degree in nursing.

Flash forward seven years and both have graduated from Mizzou, Brian continues his career at L. Keeley Construction and Melissa has graduated with a doctorate and is a CRNA for Metro-West Anesthesia. They bought a house in St. Louis, and Brian bought a dog without really speaking to Melissa about it first (She now calls this her dog).

In March of 2021, Brian brought Melissa to Forest Park and asked her to spend the rest her life with him.

After their wedding, Melissa and Brian honeymooned in Antigua. The couple resides in St. Louis.