Two SHSU Students Selected As Finalists for Free Wedding

When a Houston television station announced last week that three couples had been selected as finalists to receive a free wedding, viewers discovered that two of the brides-to-be are Sam Houston State University students.

KPRC-TV Channel 2 in Houston is sponsoring a program during the month of May, modeled after NBC's "The Today Show Throws a Wedding," where viewers select a couple by vote, then "help" the couple with the details of the wedding also by vote. The wedding will be broadcast live on May 26.

The two Bearkat brides-to-be are Katie Hammond, a public relations senior, and Jessica Salinas, a senior fashion merchandising major, both from the greater Houston area.

Channel 2 has made arrangements for a lucky couple to have a wedding in which the bride's dress, the groom's tuxedo, the wedding rings, flowers, cakes, invitations, a reception, photographer, and honeymoon will be provided free of charge.

The network version has been very popular among national viewers for four years, and producers at Channel 2 decided it would something fun for Houston area viewers, also.

The Houston station informed viewers about the program and ended up with approximately 150 couples who sent in information about their romances.

Members of the news crew at Channel 2 selected the finalists.

"We were looking for couples who would be fun to watch," said Tracy Hatfield, special projects producer for KPRC-TV.

"We wanted couples who obviously love each other very much and who the viewers would enjoy seeing together and would be rooting for them as they go through the details of preparing for a wedding," said Hatfield.

Hammond and Salinas have quite a bit in common. Both are full-time students and commute to Sam Houston State from Houston to attend classes. Both are seniors and both plan to graduate in December.
Hammond and her fiancé, Kris Blackman, were engaged on Feb. 13, and Salinas and her fiancé, James Powell, were engaged on Feb. 14. Both couples had planned weddings for May 2005.

The couples were introduced to viewers on April 30. Viewers now have the opportunity to vote on the couple they would like to see win the contest. (See Channel 2's web site. ) Voting will end at 6:30 p.m. Monday, May 3, and the winning couple will be announced live on Channel 2's Daybreak news show between 5 and 7 a.m. on Tuesday, May 4.

After the announcement is made, viewers will then have the opportunity to vote on the basic necessities for the wedding.

The brides-to-be are not concerned about what they might end up with. They've seen some of the choices and are pleased with the quality of the items.

Houston businesses were so eager to participate that some had to be turned away, said Hatfield.

"The response has been overwhelming," she said. "People love that great love story and want to feel a part of it."

-END-

Media Contact: Julia May
April 30, 2004
Please send comments, corrections, news tips to Today@Sam.