Amy Carter Marries in Plains, in a Plain Ceremony

Amy Carter, the 28-year-old daughter of former President Carter, was married in a homespun ceremony on the bank of a pond where her late grandmother used to fish.

The groom is James Wentzel, a 27-year-old computer consultant at the University of New Orleans. Amy is studying for a master’s degree in art history at nearby Tulane University. The two met last summer while she was working in an Atlanta bookstore managed by Wentzel.

“We are all happy. The bride and groom are now husband and wife,” the former president said after the 15-minute private ceremony Sunday attended by about 140 friends and family members.

Wentzel is the son of Jim and Judy Wentzel of Herndon, Va. His father, a retired Mobil Oil Co. executive, met the Carters for the first time Saturday night.

“It’s very exciting for us,” Jim Wentzel said. “We’ve known about it for six weeks. We’re very happy. We’re getting some nice in-laws.”

Added Carter: “I gained a son. I think we had a good melding of the two families last night.”

The marriage was held at the Pond House, a secluded home surrounded by tall pines and oaks where Carter’s mother, Lillian, used to fish. Amy Carter lived there with her during Carter’s 1976 presidential campaign, and the president-elect also interviewed potential Cabinet members at the site.

The site is a few miles southwest of Plains.

Amy Carter, who will keep her maiden name, walked from the house with her parents, down a path of pine straw. She and Wentzel took their vows beneath an arbor of wild vines.