Post COVID Wedding

Recently, I assisted with my first post-COVID pandemic wedding at the Rosehill Community Center in Mukilteo, WA. I had the privilege of assisting with this wedding because of Simply Wed company. I connected with Simply Wed in 2019 for an opportunity to assist a local Washington state wedding planning company. A non-profit organization contact introduced me to the owner of Simply Wed, Kirstie Warren when she learned that I enjoyed event planning. My connection with Kirstie was instant. I was looking forward to assisting in the wedding/event process, however, COVID hit that year which disrupted the wedding season across the board. I stayed in touch with Kirstie as I still wanted to help when the season reopened. Finally, a wedding event became suitable for my schedule on June 18^th, 2022. Not only was my volunteering experience delayed, but so was the awesome couple’s big day. The happy couple waited 1,288 days for a true celebration where they could be surrounded by friends and family from all over. The wedding was beautiful, and you could feel the love and support all around.

Since this was a post-COVID wedding, I thought I would highlight a few observations to help others who might be waiting for their dream wedding. This is also for those who are recently engaged and wondering how to navigate this new dynamic in this semi-post-pandemic era.

Observations:

· Establish guest safety precautions – Your guests will come if they desire to come and use the precautions they are comfortable with. If a couple decides to use an enforcer type of approach for safety protocols for their guests, this could offend them or, worse, discourage them from attending. In this post-pandemic era, we all understand that everyone’s safety is critical, but I would caution against the aggressive approach.

· Be flexible – While this is not a new observation, post-COVID has presented many additional challenges. The couple and the planners must be flexible and creative to find effective solutions (i.e. when vendors fall through, supplies are not available, etc).

· Trust your delegators – Ensure you have trusted delegators for your day of celebration so every issue or detail is not brought to you. This will allow you to enjoy your day and your guests. Do not worry you will hear all about the issues/concerns after your honeymoon.

· Avoid too many last-minute changes – Do not surprise the planner with too many new changes or ideas on the day of the event. Ensure all event and guest details are communicated prior to the wedding day, ideally during rehearsal time is a suitable time if you can not communicate earlier.

Overall enjoy your special day, it will all come together smoothly as it did for the wedding on June 18^th.

Happy wedding planning and remember to ensure your wedding day decisions will lead to a happy marriage post your wedding day.