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In February 2015, I was confronted with one of the most challenging moments of my life: I needed to find a wedding officiant for my little sister, Randi. I was searching everywhere for someone who could perform a wedding affordably (as the one planning and executing her wedding I also needed to be mindful of budget) in the way that she and her fiancé wanted. You see, Randi and Ben are unique people... Randi was a theatre major who came to work in Orlando for a semester on the Walt Disney World College Program, and Ben was a former culinary student who decided that his dream was to be a stand-up comedian. They are literally the meshing of unique and amusing with an immense amount of personality and humor thrown in. So we needed someone who would be a great fit for them.
Enter my friend Kat, who upon hearing my conundrum, advised me to become a licensed minister via the Universal Life Church.
I laughed... but then I started investigating.
It turns out that the ULC is completely 100% a true and open ended ministry organization that allows for multi faith ceremonies (or no faith at all) based on the minister's preference. I signed up, for free, and ordered a package with legitimate credentials... and here we were. I was going to do this. I was going to make my sister's dream come true.
Little did I know that as soon as we stepped into that little park off CR-535 in Orlando that my then boyfriend Ryan and I would be embarking on an adventure. Randi and Ben's wedding went off with only one minor hitch when the lovely bride stepped into a hole and sprained her ankle. They enjoyed their first dance under a pavilion in the park, and took their first pictures as a couple under playground equipment. I wrote a ceremony that we all felt encapsulated them: with references to the musical "Wicked" and mentions of Ben's comedic roots, I worked hard to make sure that their day would be memorable... something they could tell their kids and family about one day.
Pi Day, March 14, 2015, was a day we will never forget because it was the beginning of a new life and a new calling for me. Something that was meant to be a immediate solution became awesome and beautiful and FUN. And don't we all love to have a job that's fun? It's not really a job then, is it? Not only did I officiate, but it was Ryan's re-entry into coordination: he helped with the entire day and even got to yell at a few Boy Scout den moms who illegally brought in their canoes in the lake behind the park.
And that's where this story began.
