Before they ever met, Georgette Hoang’s husband knew he would date her one day. Hoang, formerly Georgette Raad, never met her husband, Long, when they had a class together at St. Edward’s University. But he Facebook stalked her for months, and they finally met after Georgette transferred to the University of Texas.
The pair started dating a year later, and eight years after that, they got married in a November 2021 ceremony at St. Ignatius Martyr Catholic Church in South Austin, followed by a reception at the AT&T Hotel and Conference Center on the UT campus.
Georgette’s favorite moment of the wedding was the second she saw her soon-to-be-husband as she walked down the aisle.
“We didn’t do a first look,” Georgette said. “We didn’t talk the day of, we didn’t text, we didn’t call, we didn’t see each other. We made it a point to not see each other after the rehearsal dinner. So I was walking down the aisle and we had a violinist. It was goosebump music. But [I was] just walking down the aisle with my dad, and Long and I were staring at each other. There were so many people there, and all we saw was each other. That was the most special part of the day for me.”
She said her husband isn’t a crier — but he let it all out when he saw her.
“I’ve never seen him cry like that,” she said.
Another favorite moment was the final dance of the night after the reception. The party filed outside to set up their sparklers for the couple’s grand exit, and the newlyweds took a moment to themselves to dance together to Etta James’ “At Last.”
After two postponements due to the pandemic, Georgette loved finally having all their family and friends together. They had a big wedding party — 10 bridesmaids and 10 groomsmen — and loved bringing everyone together to celebrate.
But there was one special person missing from the celebration. Georgette’s uncle was Clifford Antone, founder of the classic Austin blues club Antone’s and the record store that shares the same name. Antone died in 2006, but Georgette found ways to make sure her uncle was around on her special day. They cut out one of his blue shirts into the shape of his initials and sewed it inside of her dress. They placed a photo of him on the memory table. And they even hosted their rehearsal dinner upstairs at Antone’s in his memory.
“He made an impact on the world for sure, and Austin and the music industry. But for me it’s beyond that,” Georgette said. “He just showed me how to be a good person. He would take his shirt off his back for anyone. I tried to keep his legacy living on in different ways.”
Georgette said Antone was like another parent to her when growing up. She said he always told her the story of when she was born, she was so little that he held her in the palm of his hand, and that was when he knew he would always take care of her.
Georgette said Antone still takes care of her, even more than 15 years after his death. She sees yellow butterflies often, which she views as him checking in on her. And right before she got on the phone for our interview, a yellow butterfly circled around her.
Georgette Raad and Long Hoang's sparkly wedding exit.
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