Wedding Kiss NY

The most important and most anticipated part of a wedding day for the bride and groom and their loved ones is the marriage ceremony. Bill has performed marriage ceremonies for over 30 years and I have performed marriages for over 10 years on Long Island, in New York City, the metro area, throughout New York State and beyond. Both of us are graduates of a two-year interfaith seminary. In addition, Bill is a Retired Judge and I am a Former Village Mayor. We are experienced professionals who understand the hopes and desires of couples as they plan their wedding day and a lifetime together. We want it to be a joyful and memorable occasion. When we meet we get to know the bride and groom and begin to become a chapter in their lifelong love story. In order to perform weddings in New York City as qualified Marriage Officiants, we registered with the City Clerk’s office. After performing a marriage as a legally registered officiant, I sign the marriage license and insert my registrati...

On occasion Bill and I officiate at a wedding ceremony together, each of us assuming different parts of the ceremony. At one of our weddings I began to introduce the guests to the “heart” of the ceremony, saying “In a moment the Bride and Groom will exchange their wedding vows. No other vows are more sacred or important!” Bill and I noticed the Maid of Honor slipping the Bride an iPhone. Ignoring this, I proceeded to ask the Groom if he had special words for his Bride. He said his vows eloquently. He looked into his Bride’s eyes and promised eternal love and devotion. As I began to pose the same question to the Bride, I saw her searching for her vows on her phone. Gradually, the guests began laughing and chattering. Once she found her vows, she began to read them, beautiful words of love and devotion. Both of us stored this awkward moment for the Bride in the back of our minds. Now when we meet with couples, we always emphasize that we believe the vows are the heart of the wedding ce...

The Wedding Rehearsal Bill and I have performed thousands of weddings. Now and then a couple will ask if we are available for a wedding rehearsal a few days before or on the wedding day an hour or so before the ceremony. Some couples have a rehearsal dinner following a rehearsal. They invite members of their families, the wedding party, and out of town guests. In reality, few couples need an officiant at a wedding rehearsal. An exception to this has been when we have been asked to co-officiate a marriage ceremony. It makes sense for us to be part of the rehearsal when a friend or relative (online officiant), out-of-state minister and others with uncertain credentials, has been asked by the couple to share in the performance of the marriage ceremony. Bill or I, in these cases, are responsible for the “legal” pronouncement of marriage which is a safeguard for couples particularly if down the road the marriage turns sour. Nonetheless, most of the time it is is absolutely unneces...

It is an Honor to Perform Your Wedding Ceremony Bill and I, as Marriage Officiants, have the honor of performing weddings in New York State and New York City and beyond.  Bill is a Retired Judge and I am a Former Village Mayor, but we are also recognized as Ministers, qualified to perform religious and faith-based wedding ceremonies in addition to civil wedding ceremonies.  When the Bride and Groom surf the Internet to find a qualified Marriage Officiant to perform their wedding ceremony, they encounter a variety of titles and positions, including justice of the peace, judge, justice, town/county clerk, mayor (government officials), commissioner, minister, celebrant, clergyman or clergywoman, rabbi, nondenominational, interdenominational and interfaith minister, priest and more. Note that marriage laws spell out the requirements to qualify to be a Marriage Officiant, and these vary from state to state and city to city nationwide. No, Bill and I did not go on the Internet...

Why include a special ceremony such as the Unity Candle Ceremony or Unity Sand Ceremony in the Wedding Ceremony? Bill and I have found that short, meaningful ceremonies offer a unique way to: include loved ones in the wedding capture keepsake memories on video and in photos. incorporate cultural, religious or family traditions share feelings of love for each other in public acknowledge the sanctity of marriage remember love ones who have passed embrace children and family life evoke tender emotions celebrate a life-changing milestone These are just some of the many reasons couples decide to include special ceremonies or what are also referred to as “rituals” in a wedding ceremony. The most popular ceremonies are the Unity Candle, Unity Sand, Embracing Children and the Glass-Breaking ceremonies. However, Bill and I perform all of these and variations of them as well as a number of other very wonderful ceremonies. Sometimes we change words or rewrite or augment a ceremo...

Wedding s   at  H ome :  Part  One       Throughout the year ,  Bill and I perform wedding s not only in  particular public venues  but also in  private  homes  and residences .   It could be the bride ’s  or groom’s home,  the  parent ’s   home,   a  grandparent’s  condo  or a rented ho use  in the Hamptons.   Weddings in  a  ho me  are  among our most memorable.  I will write another blog on this topic , but at this time I would like to describe  two theme weddings that  B ill and  I  performed in the homes of couples we married.     In this  first  wedding story t he bride and the groom were both divorced  and between them they had six children.  It was  Halloween , the perfect day  for  a  theme  wedding!  The  inside and outside of the...