I need some help from my DIS friends living in Washington DC

[LJC1861]

My partner Lisa and I have been together for 10 years. Our anniversary is on March 21, and we have decided to go to Washington DC..to see her brother and.....

To get MARRIED. It is legal in Washington DC, and we thought what a great way to celebrate our 10th year together.

Here is my dilemma....we are only going to have the ceremony part in DC, and have a reception later on this summer at home in Asheville.

Does anyone know of anywhere we could have a short ceremony ( a minister friend of Lisa's has offered to do the ceremony) that will not cost us an arm and a leg?

Thanks in advance for any help you can give us.
Linda

 

[SingingMUA]

What type of ceremony site are you looking for? (church, hall, museum, etc)

There are lots of great historic places in DC depending on the type of feel you are going for. There are several welcoming and affirming churches in DC (I happen to sing at one) if you are looking for a more "traditional" feel. There's also museums and historic mansions, etc that are available for wedding venues.

What direction are you guys trying to go in??

(and do you need a Makeup Artist??? the "MUA" part of my screen name is for Makeup Artist... )

 

[LJC1861]

Thank you SO much for getting back to me. I really appreciate it.

We are looking for small and intimate, just for a short ceremony. There might be might be 8 of us....tops.....present.

Being that we are looking at mid March, anywhere outside might be challenging, but we are open to it. What we really need is inexpensive. Historical would be kind of cool.

I have heard that the Jefferson Memorial is one of the spots on the Mall that will allow you to have a wedding ceremony. I am also intriqued by the Old Post Office Tower.

We are still in the thinking stages, but will need to move quickly as we only have 2 months.

We do have a minister friend who will be officiating at the ceremony, so that part is taken care of. We just need the spot.

Thanks so much for any suggestions you might have.

Linda

 

[SingingMUA]

Sorry for the delay in responding...


mid March is pretty close to the start of the Cherry Blossom festival, and is also right about the time that tourist season kicks up around here...

I hadn't heard about the Jefferson Memorial, but that sounds like it could be a cool idea... of course, you could potentially run into lots of tourists around the memorials, and locals who are getting pics of the cherry blossoms.

have you looked in to places such as the Sculpture Garden or the National Portrait Gallery?? I believe they do private events... not sure what the associated costs would be, though.

Other than that, there are many historic churches in the area that may also be options for you. I know that the church that I sing for is a welcoming and affirming church, and it is a historic building (built around 1900). It's a very quaint church with a beautiful pipe organ and wooden pews and a center aisle.

something to think about...

let me know if you have any further questions.

 

[LJC1861]

Tia,

Thanks SO much!

The minister who is officiating at our ceremony is a friend of my partner's. He is looking into churches for us. I will also check out the sculpture garden.

What is the weather typically like around mid March? We will be there from 3/18-23.

As for tourists getting in the way if we have it at the Jefferson Memorial, so be it......maybe it will spark some discussion in their families about same sex marriage.

We are SOOO excited!!!!

Linda

 

[SingingMUA]

You're very welcome...

The weather in mid-March can be a bit of a crap shoot... It could be snowing, but it could also be in the 60's, so unfortunately, it's hard to say, really.

And you're right, you guys could end up sparking a healthy discussion!

If you do decide to go the church route, there are a couple of welcoming and affirming churches that I can think of off the top of my head... There's the church that I sing for (Cleveland Park Congregational United Church of Christ), there's Calvary Baptist Church (it's located in the Gallery Place/Chinatown area), National City Christian Church (located at Thomas Circle). They are "historic" buildings... with I think National City being the most elaborate and Cleveland Park being the smallest.

Let me know if you have any more questions.

Oh and CONGRATULATIONS!

 

[nordkin]

Have you given thought to the three day waiting period for the license? We got married last March 14 in DC. We went to get the license on March 9 and were shocked when they said we could pick it up on March 15. The day you apply for the license does not count and it is available to pick up after the close of business of the third full business day thus making it four days or more if there is a weekend in there. By my calculations if you apply for the license your first day, March 18, the earliest you could have license in hand is March 24.

We were advised to go to the judge's chambers and ask for an exception because we had already reserved the place, had the minister lined up, people coming in from out of town, etc. We go fill out the paperwork and the judge says I have good news and bad news. The bad news is I can not grant the exception due to the law on granting them. The good news is I live very close to you so I will pick up the license at close of business on Friday and meet one of you Saturday morning foe coffee and give it to you. I met her at Starbucks near our house and she gave me the license. I asked her why she was so kind and her reply was that after 23 years of being together we should not have to wait another day to do what we should have been able to do many years prior. This just made our wedding that much more special.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

I don't know what religion you are but the Quaker meeting house in duping circle has a lovel garden that would be perfect for a small ceremony.

 

[LJC1861]

Have you given thought to the three day waiting period for the license? We got married last March 14 in DC. We went to get the license on March 9 and were shocked when they said we could pick it up on March 15. The day you apply for the license does not count and it is available to pick up after the close of business of the third full business day thus making it four days or more if there is a weekend in there. By my calculations if you apply for the license your first day, March 18, the earliest you could have license in hand is March 24.

We were advised to go to the judge's chambers and ask for an exception because we had already reserved the place, had the minister lined up, people coming in from out of town, etc. We go fill out the paperwork and the judge says I have good news and bad news. The bad news is I can not grant the exception due to the law on granting them. The good news is I live very close to you so I will pick up the license at close of business on Friday and meet one of you Saturday morning foe coffee and give it to you. I met her at Starbucks near our house and she gave me the license. I asked her why she was so kind and her reply was that after 23 years of being together we should not have to wait another day to do what we should have been able to do many years prior. This just made our wedding that much more special.

We have given much thought to the waiting period. We are working with a licensed and bonded agent who will file the paperwork for us and then we will pick it up. We have everything notarized and money orders in the proper sequence and it went off via Fed Ex today!

Linda

 

[LJC1861]

I don't know what religion you are but the Quaker meeting house in duping circle has a lovel garden that would be perfect for a small ceremony.

Thanks for the tip. I will check it out. Is that Duping or Dupont Circle?

As for religion....we are a mixed bag.....I would be fine being married in any church!

Linda

 

[SingingMUA]

Thanks for the tip. I will check it out. Is that Duping or Dupont Circle?

As for religion....we are a mixed bag.....I would be fine being married in any church!

Linda

It's Dupont Circle...

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

Thanks for the tip. I will check it out. Is that Duping or Dupont Circle?

As for religion....we are a mixed bag.....I would be fine being married in any church!

Linda

That's what happens when you post from your ipad -- darn autocorrect.

Yes, it's Dupont Circle.