A
Marriage of Two Careers
As Steve Samolewicz, head
coach of Smith’s ski team,
gears up for this year’s season, he can add another
skill to his résumé.
Two months ago, Samolewicz,
who is also a practicing attorney in Northampton, stepped
in as a Justice of the Peace to join in matrimony his former
team captain and her fiancé.
Steve Samolewicz (background) marries Katie Horton ’04
to Josh Puchalski on Sept. 27. |
When Katie Horton ’04,
of Chittenden, Vt., sought to marry Josh Puchalski, a computer
consultant, she asked Samolewicz, who had been a mentor
during her Smith years, to perform the ceremony.
Horton and Puchalski were married on September 27 at the
Mountain Top Inn in Chittenden, Vt.
“I was asked by Katie last summer if I would be willing
to ‘officiate’ the wedding as Justice of the
Peace,” recalls Samolewicz. “I’ve never
acted as a Justice of the Peace prior to this so I was a
bit nervous about the process.”
Though Samolewicz, who specializes in real estate and estate
law, practices in Massachusetts, he learned that Vermont
had recently passed a law that allows a person who is not
a Justice of the Peace in Vermont to assume that role one
time to preside over a wedding.
Samolewicz poses with
his wife, Jennifer, and the happy couple following
their wedding. |
“We did the necessary paperwork with the state and
I was allowed to oversee the wedding,” he said. “It
went great and we all had a good time.”
Samolewicz, who has served
as Smith’s ski coach for
ten years, was honored to marry Horton and her husband, he
says. “I’ve remained very close to Katie and
her father since her graduation,” he said. “Her
ski career at Smith was very impressive. She served as captain
for three years and she made the all-league team all four
years, which no one else has done at Smith.”
Though he has gained a new skill, Samolewicz says he has
no plans to repeat his performance of Justice of the Peace
any time soon. For now, he has enough to focus on in his
roles as attorney and ski coach.
The ski team is preparing
for training in Breckenridge, Colo., beginning December
28. Samolewicz has high expectations of a strong season
with several team wins, some personal records—and
no marriages.
|
