Irene Alvarez

Dearly Beloved Family & Friends,

Welcome to this special moment in the lives of Elke Voss and Richard Boston. I invite you to leave behind the worries and concerns of everyday life and join us in the celebration of their marriage. This is a blessed opportunity for us to share the couples love and to also reaffirm the love and friendship we experience in our own lives. May we all celebrate by being fully present during our short time together, witnessing the union of this beautiful couple.

Personal Remarks by Officiant

First, I would like to introduce myself. My name is Irene. I met Ate Elke when I was 13 years old, which wasn’t too long ago since I’m only 21…haha I wish! At that time, the twins, Larz & Kassandra were 9 months old. I immediately fell in love with them including Kevin & Le’Trell and always wanted to babysit. I was constantly at their house while Ate Elke was working hard or going to school, or sometimes both! I’d help with the chores & feed the kids my favorite, Top Ramen with eggs and I’d put ice cubes in there to help cool it down faster so the kids wouldn’t burn their mouths. Till this day, they never forget & always remind me about it!! Don’t hate, I know you all have done that with your noodles too haha!

As the years passed, Ate Elke & I grew closer & closer. She was like an older sister to me, always looking out for me, teaching me how to be a good mom, & a professional. She got me my first job at the Medical office where she was working. We were together practically everyday. Even after I started my own family & moved away; spending many years apart from each other, we never lost touch and whenever we did reconnect it was like time never passed. Ate Elke has a huge part of making me the woman & mother I am today, so when she asked me to Officiate her & Kuya Rich’s wedding I felt truly blessed and humbled to be a part of this huge lifetime commitment of theirs. Thank you both, I can’t express enough how much this means to me.

Kuya Rich & Ate Elke have been together since Jan 14, 2015. It was a time when social media dating started becoming a “thing”. Zoosk was one of the popular dating sites they were both on. Ate saw that he visited her profile on Zoosk, but did not leave a message. So Ate said to herself "oh H. E. double hockey sticks No", and messaged him two simple words "Good Morning". That was 8 years ago today, and they have been inseparable ever since!

A week later, they agreed to meet for coffee in Emeryville near Ate’s work. Unfortunately it was MLK so the restaurants were closed. Instead they decided to walk to the end of the pier and talked for over 2 hours. If you know Kuya Rich at all, (aka The Joker) you know they were laughing the entire time. The chemistry was there right from the start. I’m sure you could all see how they easily fell for each other, they are both such chill individuals with a lot of similarities which makes them a perfect match. Kuya fell for her fast. A few days after their first date, he told her he was in love with her. He even couldn’t wait to see her in person to ask her to be his lady so he did it over the phone. Thank goodness their wedding proposal wasn’t like that!

Since then, they have grown deeply in love & became stronger together. They’ve created a beautiful blended family with all their kids & their partners, (point to each one) Kevin, Le'Trell, Kassy, Tori, Chris, Gabriel, Jeremiah, & Christian.

When they started planning their wedding, they knew they wanted to have Ate Elke’s father, Opa Voss’ and Mama Lolita Wong , Kuya Rich's mom, present during their wedding ceremony. Opa Voss was a Chief Engineer with the Merchant Marines and was buried at sea in their hometown of Bremerhaven. So they chose to wed on a boat on the waters of the Bay, kissing the shores of San Francisco where mama Lolita Wong is buried in the small town of Colma. Could we please bow our heads to have a moment of silence in their memory?

*Pause*

Unity candle

Now I would like Le'Trell and Jeremiah to come up and light the Unity candle. This candle is a symbol to unite the families as one.

Declaration of Intent

*PAUSE*

Do you Elke Voss take this man Richard Boston to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, in good times and bad, for richer or poorer, until death do you part?

*(Wait for Confirmation)*

Do you Richard Boston take this woman Elke Voss to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, in good times and bad, for richer or poorer, until death do you part?

*(Wait for Confirmation)*

Exchange of Rings

Elke and Richard will now exchange rings as a symbol of their love and commitment. (Ring holder - gives the rings to Kuya Rich & Ate Elke)

Elke, please repeat after me, " I give you this ring to wear with love and joy. As a ring has no end, neither shall my love for you. I choose you to be my husband this day and forever more, loving one another totally in body, mind and spirit”

*(Ring Exchange)*

Richard, please repeat after me, " I give you this ring to wear with love and joy. As a ring has no end, neither shall my love for you. I choose you to be my wife this day and forever more, loving one another totally in body, mind and spirit”

*(Ring Exchange)*

Declaration of Marriage

By the authority vested in me in the State of California and along with their family, I now pronounce you Mr. & Mrs. Richard Boston!

First Kiss

You may now kiss the Bride!