Cooley-Maher Wedding Ceremony
The mission of the HeartSongs Ceremonies is to help couples from Washington, D.C., as well as from all over the United States, celebrate their commitment to one another in our nation’s capital. We understand that each couple has their own unique wishes for their perfect wedding, and to make it possible for the couple to be as involved as they choose in the planning of their wedding ceremony, we provide three options from which you can choose the perfect way to plan your wedding.
1) A Formal Ceremony
A full, formal wedding with a rehearsal held before the actual ceremony.
John Ray, the wedding officiant, will meet with the couple one week before the wedding, get to know them and plan the details of the wedding. John will design the order of service for the wedding ceremony based on the discussion, and email the order to the couple for confirmation. The couple will take care of planning all other details of the wedding, such as applying for their marriage license from the District of Columbia Marriage Bureau, finding the location for the ceremony, arranging for flowers and decoration, music, and the reception. The day/evening before the service, a short rehearsal will be held to go over the order of service to make sure all participant know exactly what to do during the ceremony. On the day of the wedding ceremony, John will arrive one hour before the start to make sure everything is ready, officiate the wedding, and sign the marriage certificate.
Cost for Option 1: $500
2) A Small Gathering
A simple gathering of the couple and, if the couple so chooses, a few family and friends.
John Ray, the wedding officiant, will meet with the couple a few days before the wedding to get to know a little about them and what they might like to feature in their ceremony. John will make an order of service based on the discussions and email it to the couple for confirmation. The couple will take care of planning all other details of the wedding, such as applying for their marriage license from the District of Columbia Marriage Bureau, finding the location for the ceremony, arranging for flowers and decoration, music, and the reception. On the day of the wedding ceremony, John will arrive about 30 minutes before the start, officiate the wedding, and sign the marriage certificate.
Cost for Option 2: $250
3) A Standard Wedding / Commitment Ceremony
John Ray will meet with the couple once to get to know a little about them and find out their general plans for the wedding ceremony. John will choose a standardized order of service based on the discussion and email it to the couple to help in their planning. The couple will take care of planning all other details of the wedding, such as applying for their marriage license from the District of Columbia Marriage Bureau, finding the location for the ceremony, arranging for flowers and decoration, music, and the reception. On the day of the wedding ceremony, John will arrive about 30 minutes before the start, officiate the wedding, and sign the marriage certificate.
Cost for Option 3: $150
Options for Out-of-Towners
All of these options are available whether the couple resides in Washington, D.C., or are traveling to Washington for the ceremony. The only difference is that the meetings that take place before the wedding can take place via Skype, FaceTime, or possibly other videoconferencing means, if the couple does not want to travel to Washington, D.C., in advance of the wedding. Also, if the couple cannot arrive in Washington, D.C., early enough in advance for the wedding ceremony to apply for the marriage license in person, HeartSongs Ceremonies may be able to help you file for your paperwork remotely; please contact us to discuss this possibility! Otherwise everything follows the same basic guidelines.
Note that the District of Columbia does not have a residency requirement for couples to be married, so out-of-towners are welcome to come to our city to be married in this unique place that is Washington, D.C.!
Issues to Consider
A few short items to think about when planning your wedding:
- If you are having a rehearsal dinner after the rehearsal (in Option 1 above), please do not feel obligated to include the wedding officiant. HeartSongs Ceremonies fully understand that weddings can be quite expensive, and reducing costs at available opportunities is always a worthwhile consideration. Inviting just family and friends to the rehearsal dinner is perfectly fine.
- If you are coming outside of Washington, D.C., please note that the wedding must be performed in the District. Please do not ask HeartSongs Ceremonies to perform the wedding anywhere else, as this is not legal.
To find out more about what is needed to become married in Washington, D.C., visit the District of Columbia Marriage Bureau.
Please do not hesitate to get in touch with us with any questions. Our mission is to help you experience the wedding of your dreams, and we’ll be glad to help any way we can!
Send an email to weddings (at) HeartSongsCeremonies.com or call 202.674.0274to start making plans for your perfect wedding!