MaryAnn and Gary Sloan
Anchorage, AK
May 10, 1986

MaryAnn and Gary:
I give you this ring, symbol of my love and fidelity.
This marriage is a permanent relationship in which we will express our love through family.
I want to make you happy and take care of you.
I will do my best to treat you with respect and be attentive to your needs so that the love and trust and friendship that we share will always be as strong as it is today.
MaryAnn thought she felt more than a love for music when she found herself an ardent fan of Gary's band, then playing the only live Blues music in all Alaska. Gary noticed this standout groupie and the two were soon married and have anchored down in Anchorage with their twin sons.



Kerry Conner and Steven Riggs
Indiana
April 21, 1990

Kerry and Steven:
I ask you to be my life's companion, and I offer my life to share with you.
I will share with you my home, my work, my burdens and joys.
I will honor you as a person, and cherish you as a companion, as we travel life's way.
I will stand by you in all the seasons of our lives, in times of darkness as well as light.
I look forward to sharing my life with you, whatever the future holds, as we journey together from this day forth.
When Kerry met Steven at Indiana University's law school, she didn't think he was very attractive and commented to a friend, "He just thinks he is." It took Steven six months to convince Kerry to go out with him. Case closed, they were married soon after graduation. They now lead a hectic lifestyle as two attorneys with three children - Emily, Dan and Elizabeth.



Jacqueline and Mark Robin
New York City, NY
August 19, 1990

Mark:
Jackie, I knew from the first moment I set eyes on you that we would be here now doing this, I just didn't know all the things, the places, the people that would happen in-between:
chocolate chip cookies with sunflower seeds, an operator's voice repeating her phone number, Air France, Columbus Circle, Central Park, the Boat Pond, the park bench, sushi, no ice cream, the crinkly chin, sunrise at Carl Shurz Park, the East River, no commitment, the Great Lawn, the A train, the George Washington Bridge, Fort Tryon Park, the Cloisters, saying good-bye to the Unicorns, the Hudson River, Szechuan Kitchen, En, La Manana, cab rides, black and blue marks, Christmas in Detroit, Poetry at P.S. 25, Dynamic Tours, Washington Heights, Portugal, Sagres, Olaf, Evora, A Gruta, Peniche, sardines, Caldes de Geres, Barcelona, Biarritz, two weeks in Paris, the canteen bopping you on the head, Washington Heights, the advertising business, New York Magazine, Tennis Magazine, jury duty, Happy Avenue, Dexter, car rides upstate, antique pews, antique mirrors, Woodstock, Vassmers, pepperoni pizza, chicken coops, horses, LAX, Venice, Washington Way, our next door neighbor John, the Boardwalk, Sean and Robert juggling fire, walks on the beach, tank tops and shorts, family visits, Ensenada, lobsters and margaritas, Beyond Baroque, golf, the Grand Canyon with snow, Niner on our doorstep New Year's Day, Hammacher Schlemmer Haiku, comedian Bob F., the wedding idea, the announcement, the invitations, the dress, my outfit, your first stitches, this ring...whatever happens next and forever...I love you.


Jackie:
Mark, from the very beginning we said we weren't looking for a "serious" relationship. Even now we joke and say, "Yeah, we're getting married, but it's not serious." I know now that what I love so much about you is the way you make me laugh, the way you make me feel so comfortable, so loved, and so safe. I guess the reason we're up here today is that I can't imagine my life without you (and even though we're still not serious) I am the happiest person I know, knowing that I am going to spend the rest of my life with you. I love you...
When Mark met Jacqueline at a friend's birthday party, she repeated her work telephone number three times, like a telephone operator, so he wouldn't forget. Not only did Mark remember, but he called the next morning and they went out the next night for "a day and a half." Besides their unique wedding service, Mark and Jackie also produced on January 14, 1993 a baby boy: Andrew Benjamin.



Lorin and Peter Elkin
Los Angeles Marathon, Los Angeles, CA
March 1, 1992

Minister:
Peter, will you take Lorin to be your wife and your equal, and pledge to share your life openly with her in love? Will you promise to honor and tenderly care for her, to cherish, and encourage her own fulfillment as an individual, to stand by her always in times of celebration and times of sadness, in times of health, and in times of sports injury, through the uphills and downhills and through all the changes of your lives? (The Minister then asked the same questions to Lorin and after her reply continued).

Minister:
Marriage can be compared to a marathon, it takes commitment, dedication, a sense of purpose, and a will to persevere. By training and completing marathons you have shown each other that you possess these qualities. Already you exhibit these qualities in your relationship together. It is important as husband and wife to rely on these qualities and support each other in your lives together.
Peter, repeat after me: Lorin, take this ring, as a sign of my love for you. I pledge to be honest and open, loving and caring, throughout our life together. I will stand by you always. I will support you. I will love you completely and unconditionally.
Lorin and Peter's story begins at the end - the finish line, that is, of the 1990 Los Angeles Marathon. They felt it only appropriate that two years later their wedding should take place on the same asphalt covered path that led them to each other. After running 13 miles in formal attire (Lorin changed into a dry gown for the ceremony; Peter wore black running shorts beneath his tuxedo jacket) this couple stopped midway in the race to exchange vows in front of their minister, family (wearing running suits, naturally), KCOP's TV cameras and the marathon's television audience. After they sealed the ceremony with a kiss, Lorin and Peter shouted, "Let's finish this marathon!!"



Wendy DuBow and Tom Margolis
Boulder, CO
July 12, 1997

Tom:
    The pledge we make is not a chain, since it cannot be broken.
Wendy:
    It is not a fusion, since we will always know one from the other.
Tom:
    It is not a metamorphosis, since it cannot change who we are.
Wendy:
    It is not a promise, since it cannot be broken and abandoned.
Wendy:
    This pledge is a mirror reflecting who we are.
Tom:
    It is a map, showing who we want to become.
Wendy:
    It is a gift, which we give freely and receive with love.
Wendy sent the following note with her vows: "Our ceremony derives from the standard Boulder County, Colorado ceremony (which we originally went through Dec. 31, 1996), but we personalized it and added a Jewish dimension. All right, so we completely changed it. But I must say, the Boulder civil ceremony was wonderfully secular, lovely and meaningful, and ended with a Native American prayer. You don't find that in too many counties...Nonetheless, I like our version better, of course."