Jennifer Layne McCorkle and Stephen Garrett Sowell were united in holy matrimony on Tuesday, December 31, 2013, at 7:30 p.m. in the evening at Nevils United Methodist Church in Nevils, Georgia. The Reverend Don Proctor and the Rev. Ron Johnson officiated the double-ring ceremony. The couple also shared their first communion as a married couple during the ceremony. Music was provided by Donny Collins and Donna Brigman.
     The bride is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Gary McCorkle of Register. She is the granddaughter of the late Lemuel McCorkle and Mrs. Lutrell McCorkle of Register and the late Freddie Charles "Pete" McNeely and Mrs. Ada McNeely of Swainsboro.
     The groom is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Wadley S. "Steve" Sowell of Sylvania. He is the grandson of the late Mr. and Mrs. James W. Cavender and Mrs. Connie L. Cavender of Claxton and the late Mr. Wadley E. Sowell and Mrs. Helen H. Sowell of Sylvania.
     Escorted and given in marriage by her father, the bride wore a ballgown featuring a beaded lace bodice with a sweetheart neckline adorned with crystals and pearls and a dropped waist. The skirt of the gown was made of satin with box pleats that fell to the floor, and the train was adorned with satin buttons and crystal flowers down the middle extending to the end of the cathedral-length train. The bride's two-tier veil, made in Italy, was hand-beaded with crystals and pearls around the edges to match the wedding gown. She carried white Eskimo roses and blue delphiniums tied with a white and silver ribbon. Also in the bouquet were two small vintage bouquet picture charms, each containing a picture of the bride's grandfathers, who both passed away before the wedding.
     The bride chose Terron Taylor of Greenville, South Carolina, as her matron of honor. Bridesmaids were Heidi Stevens of Swainsboro, Georgia, Shelly Sowell of Sylvania, Christy Cleveland of Augusta, Felisha Brown of Statesboro, Anna Davis of Register, Brittany Wilkinson of Athens and Hannah Derriso of Sylvania. They wore royal blue one-shoulder satin floor-length dresses with silver beads and crystals at the waist in a starburst pattern. They carried bouquets of white roses with silver and crystal accents.
     Grace Anne Nevil served as junior bridesmaid and wore a matching royal blue floor-length dress.
     Riley Claire Nevil served as the flower girl and carried the same white flower basket carried by the bride when she was a flower girl, which was adorned with blue ribbons and contained small white flowers.
     The groom chose his father, Steve Sowell, as his best man. Junior groomsman was Matthew McCorkle, brother of the bride. Groomsmen were Dent Derriso, John Teston, Austin Thompson, Chad Boddiford, Clark Brunson, Kenneth Woodall, all of Sylvania; and James Hall of Savannah. The ring bearer was Eli Derriso of Sylvania.
     Following the ceremony, guests were greeted at the reception at The Belle House in Statesboro by Betty Williams, Pat Anderson, Gail Harmon, Lynn Lee and Debbie Johnson, all of Nevils. Guests were treated to a New Year's Eve countdown with peach Bellini champagne and a surprise snow shower with Christmas tree lighting. Guests were given champagne glasses engraved with a New Years Eve clock, the newlyweds' names and the wedding date on them to commemorate the occasion.
     The newlyweds were showered by snow as they left in a white 1950 Bentley on their way to their honeymoon to Sandals Regency La Toc in Castries, St. Lucia, and they currently reside in Newington, Georgia.