The Fresh Cut

Take an old school venue, add a deeply personal touch, and what do you get? A new classic.

- LEENA KIM

Like many people in search of a socially distanced alfresco hobby during the pandemic, Onyeka Bowers Obioha and Alfrantz Lolagne took up golf. He even proposed, in late 2020, during a getaway to the Ojai Valley Inn for a weekend on the links. So the couple’s decision to have their wedding at the Wilshire Country Club in Los Angeles felt perfectly natural given their shared leisure pursuit—but there is more to this story.

The Wilshire Country Club has been an institution nestled in the city’s historic Hancock Park neighborhood since 1919. Yet it wasn’t until 35 years ago that it admitted its first Black member, Dr. Mirion Bowers, the bride’s grandfather. “After dealing with adversity and resistance, including threats by neighbors and resignations of other members, my grandfather remains a member to this day,” says Onyeka, a dermatologist who recently opened her own practice, Boutik Dermatology, in Beverly Hills. “And at age 87 he still plays golf there three times a week.”