Lucia and Richard were recommended to me through a dear friend. We met at an Adelaide bar and discussed what they envisaged their wedding day to be. Lucia has three daughters and Richard has three sons. That’s right, Brady Bunch was what came to my mind too. They wanted their children to be the bridesmaids and groomsmen and were very keen to have their children involved in the organisation of their special day.

When we discussed the ceremony format they insisted on having a statement that I added at the end of the legal vows if couples were in support of same sex marriages. They shared with me that their siblings were in same sex relationships and they would be present. By the time the wedding date arrived 61% of Australians had voted in favour of marriage equality. I acknowledged that Richard and Lucia no longer needed to add the words they had chosen because for the first time I could say “is the union of two people to the exclusion of all others”. I didn’t realise how emotional I would be saying those words for the first time but when everyone stood up and started clapping I had to restrain the tears.

The wedding ceremony and reception was at The Lane winery and the 22nd of December 2017 was a beautiful day for a wedding. The ceremony was up on the hill and the views from there are breathtaking. What was more breathtaking was the bride and her gorgeous daughters when they arrived. I love the transformation of the bride and the bridesmaids from the rehearsal a week earlier to the goddesses on the day. Let’s not forget to mention Richard and his handsome boys.

It was an absolute pleasure and honour being your wedding celebrant.