More couples have a friend officiate their wedding

This doesn't surprise me at all - in the last 5 years or so, all but one of the weddings I've attended was officiated by a friend or family member.

From NPR: As the summer wedding season approaches, don't be surprised if there's something noticeably missing at the next wedding you attend: a member of the clergy. The Wedding Report, a research firm, says last year one out of every seven weddings in the U.S. was performed by a friend of the couple.

"I've seen it become increasingly popular over the last few years," says Melissa Evans, who has been helping couples plan weddings for more than a decade. Evans says having a friend perform the wedding is one way to make a ceremony meaningful for couples of different faiths.

Wildly inappropriate picture that made me laugh so hard I snorted.

"One partner doesn't necessarily have to give up their religion, their faith, their history," she says. "They can tie it all together."

Looking through pictures from their wedding last fall, Kate and Ed Kochem of central New York say they wouldn't change a thing — especially asking Kate's aunt to marry them. "It really made me feel more like part of Kate's family, you know?" Ed Kochem says. "As opposed to someone that I don't know, some judge or pastor that I rarely see doing the ceremony. With Kate's aunt, it really seemed like I was becoming part of her family."

"It's frightening, but it's exhilarating," says Ted Botsford who's getting ready to perform his second wedding this summer. "When somebody that you care about, and you've known for their entire lives, asks you to perform their wedding ceremony, it's a feeling you just can't imagine."

The Wedding Report says two years ago, clergy performed 70 percent of all weddings. Last year, it was down to 62 percent.


I support this trend! Not only is it cost-effective, it brings a much more personal touch to the ceremony. Why would you want someone you've only met a few times to oversee your wedding? As a guest of friend-officiated weddings, I appreciate the perspective that a good friend can bring. They know and share things about the couple that are special, and that gives me the warm fuzzies.

-KB

p.s. I'm announcing another giveaway this Friday! Stay tuned.