Kelly and Isaac ("Ike") met with me last October to decide if they wanted to hire me as their wedding officiant. They are such a sweet and thoughtful couple and we found we were a good match. They were excited about writing their own ceremony together. They originally had their wedding venue at a site in Wake Forest but in January changed it to
White Dove Wedding Chapel. The chapel was built beginning in the 1930s and completed in the 1940s as a Catholic church in the mission style of architecture. Brigitte Gros bought it in 1999. I had not seen Brigitte for nine years since I did a wedding there. Over the years she has made extensive renovations and it is certainly a beautiful setting for a wedding. The acoustics are wonderful without a microphone. Brigitte is both a photographer and an ordained minister so she wears many hats in small private weddings. For larger weddings, she subs out the job of officiant and does the photography herself. The grounds are lovely and she has a sweet little gazebo in the back. Here are some photos of the chapel.
Marta, friend of the bride, served as our wedding director and she did a great job. Thanks, Marta!
These are Kelly's parents, Debbie and Ron. Here Ron is escorting in Debbie, as mother of the bride, then he scooted around to bring in the bride.
After the bridesmaids had entered and taken their places it was time for our cute little flower girls. Looks like Ellie is raring to go but Kira has some reservations, having seen all those people in the chapel! They made it down the aisle just fine and then sat with family. Our ring bearer, Elijah, came in with his grandmother, Sylvia, but he never made it up on the altar and promptly fell asleep. He was only about 2 years old and was just being age-appropriate.
At rehearsals I usually tell the father of the bride that it is his job to keep the bride from galloping down the aisle. Looks like he's doing just that!
With everyone in place, the ceremony began.
Kelly and Ike fell in love with a story I had in my collection of readings and I was honored to read it to their guests. It is a touching Native American Legend that was originally told by Patrick the Storyteller. The name of the legend is "The Most Beautiful Couple."
( I found a link to it on the internet here. It is about the middle of the page, #44. It is a story about a cottonwood tree and a sycamore tree who have lived side by side for 200 years with their branches and roots intertwined.) They said their vows, exchanged their rings and lit the unity candle. I made the pronouncement of marriage and then............
The KISS!
And there they go!
Isn't this a great picture of Kelly and Ike? Brigitte has a sweet little bridge out behind the chapel and gets some great photos in a natural setting. The couple had requested all their guests come out back for a group photo.
The wedding party. You can't tell in this photo but it is soooo hot! The wedding was at 2:00 in the nice cool chapel and when we went outside the 90+ degrees of heat and humidity smacked us in the face!
Kelly and Ike, you are one great couple! I wish you tons of joy and happiness!
One more photo! Turns out that Kelly's brother, Mark, and I have known each other for several years. He used to work in an Indian restaurant that my husband and I go to often and he would wait on us. I did not recognize Mark because he was so dressed up and besides, I was used to being in a seated position looking up at him in the restaurant. We also have some good mutual friends. What a treat to see him again. I had no idea he was Kelly's brother!
