Matthew and Joan McGill of Benton are announcing the engagement and forthcoming wedding of their daughter, Shannon McGill, to Phillip Whatley, son of Bobby and Amy Whatley of Rayne.

The engaged couple will be married on Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011, during a 2:30 p.m. ceremony at Marty Leonards Chapel in Forth Worth, Texas, followed by a reception at the Woodhaven Country Club in Fort Worth.

The bride-elect is the granddaughter of Jean Ann McGill of S. Charles, Mich. She is a 2008 graduate of Benton High School, attended the University of Texas at Arlington, and is currently pursuing a nursing degree at Northwestern State University in Shreveport.

The prospective groom is the grandson of Wayne and Joycelyn Young of Farmerville and Don and Edna Whatley of Downsville, formerly of Rayne. He is a 2005 graduate of Rayne High School, 2011 graduate of Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, and is currently employed as a middle school art teacher for the Caddo Parish School Board.

Following their wedding, the couple plans to reside in Shreveport.