Imagine you have planned your dream wedding for two years only to have it cancelled by a global pandemic.
That is exactly what happened to Cassie and Justin Martino of Clearfield.
Cassie said they were concerned their May wedding would not be possible after things were shut down in mid-March due to the COVID-19 crisis.
At first, they waited, hoping things would get better. As things got worse, they realized they had to change their plans.
Other people were postponing their weddings but they wanted to keep the same date, May 16, which they “had planned for so long.”
“I cried,” she said. “But once we realized we could do a small ceremony with a reception later, we were relieved.”
“We decided it was okay to compromise and explore our options,” Justin said.
A big part of their alternate plans depended on Cassie’s mother allowing them to have an outdoor event on her property in Smokerun.
“I was hoping Mom would be okay having people (at her home) during a pandemic.”
She was and they scheduled a small ceremony on the original date with a larger reception with their full guest list of 300 for September.
“When you are sure it’s what you want, you can put together something small,” Cassie said.
This included buying a different, cheaper dress for this ceremony and saving her original wedding gown for their September reception.
Because her bouquet is made with artificial flowers, she was able to carry it in May and will use it again in the fall.
About 30 people attended the “COVID Wedding” on May 16.
“Everything turned out perfectly for us, after having to plan a whole new wedding in less than a month.”
The guests were their parents, grandparents, some other family and the bridal party who attended but weren’t part of the ceremony. The pastor originally set to perform the service was able to.
The small informal reception that followed included cupcakes made by the Matron of Honor instead of the traditional wedding cake.
Having their celebration outside had a bonus advantage. The couple’s “fur child,” Ace was able to attend.
“They had expected thunderstorms that day, but luckily that didn’t happen,” Cassie said, adding this is one of the lucky breaks they had with the situation.
The new Mr. and Mrs. Martino gave out the most appropriate favors to their guests: masks and hand sanitizer.
Wasn’t it difficult to find hand sanitizer?
“My grandmother had some alcohol in her basement. We made the hand sanitizer with it, aloe and essential oils.”
In rescheduling the main event until September, Justin said the toughest part was to find a date that their DJ, caterer and venue were available. They settled on Sept. 26 when they will renew their vows and celebrate again.
Only a slight change had to be made to their Jamaican honeymoon plans because they had not planned to go until August.
“I talked to the travel agent and they let us move the date to September.”
Are they disappointed that their dream wedding was not possible?
“We had all the people there we wanted and will celebrate again in September with the others,” Cassie said.
“It was what we wanted even though it wasn’t what we wanted.”
