Pete "Aloha" Tingstrom

WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION

Aloha! Good evening, family and friends. We have come here today to celebrate the wedding of Nicholas Weber and Lauren Kapp. On behalf of the bride and groom, thank you for joining us. By your presence, you celebrate with them the love they have discovered in each other, and you support their decision to commit themselves to a lifelong relationship.

Marriage is a bond to be entered into only after considerable thought and reflection. By making this commitment today, Nick and Lauren’s relationship will become stronger, better, and deeper.

Today, Nick and Lauren demonstrate their devotion to each other by dedicating themselves to a life together and they show their respect for each other. By setting forth to honor the vows they have created today, their lives, which began on separate paths, will be joined as one.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF FAMILY & FRIENDS

Today represents not only the joining of Nick and Lauren but also the joining of their families and friends.

Nick and Lauren would like to recognize their parents on this occasion. They offer their profound gratitude for all the love and care their parents showed in raising them. The unconditional gifts of love and support that you have continually offered have inspired them to become who they are today. Without you, this day would not be possible. It is an honor to have Lauren’s sister as her maid of honor and that was her niece who walked down the aisle. Lauren’s brother Brian escorting her mom Vickie to her seat and of course her dad Tim walked her down the aisle.

Let’s give a big thanks to the families of the Bride and Groom.

I like to learn about how the couple met…Nick and Lauren met at Boardriders on this day, May 1st, 2012 (11 yrs ago). She had been going there regularly looking for friends since she moved to Hawaii and was rebuilding her life. He hadn't gone out in a whole year. The first night he does go out he met her!  She told him she had a long drive back to Waiahole, he said- I have a great couch. When she went to get his phone number, her phone died right in her hands. So she said- I guess I am going with you now. They talked all night- and she did not end up staying on the couch- wink wink. The rest is history.

Then on their 10 year anniversary of them meeting- they went on a hike into Jack ass ginger magical pine forest, and he proposed to her with several friends and hanai family present, it was so special.

So I hear we had guests whom travelled from Boston (Brother Brian and Lauren’s College friends), Missouri (Lauren’s family (Tim, Vickie, Sister Natalie, husband Dave, Niece Noelle, Nephew Shane). and friends and family from California.

Then we have our group of Aunties and Uncles who are Tim and Vickie’s lifelong best friends. And the friends that they have made on the island that are truly like family/Ohana. Mahalo for being here today.

MARRIAGE ADDRESS

Deep abiding affection, the magical and compelling shared impulse that makes us seek each others’ company, is among the greatest gifts of the human experience.

Any of us who has been fortunate enough to find and express the kind of loving devotion that we are celebrating here today knows that it is an awesome and beautiful thing.

At this time, I would like to share 3 suggestions with the both of you:

My first suggestion is this:

Be constantly grateful for this precious person who has chosen to make a life with you.

My second suggestion is this:

Be generous with compliments. Be attentive and helpful. Each of you can, by your tenderness toward each other, kind words and thoughtful actions, make your marriage and your home an uplifting refuge.

Last, but perhaps most importantly: Make truth the unfailing bedrock of your lives together. A happy, loving marriage is built on trust and respect. That trust and respect can only be sustained if you are both deeply committed to always being open and truthful in every exchange no matter how small.

My hope for you is this:

That you have many long years to delight in each other’s company, to feel gratitude for your great fortune in having found each other.

To a make home together that is at once sheltering and welcoming, to each do meaningful, productive work at home and in the world and to love and be loved by the friends and family who have come here today to support you

MARRIAGE STATEMENT OF INTENT/CONSENT

Nick and Lauren, do you, present yourselves willingly and of your own accord to be joined in marriage?

We do.

Will you promise to care for each other in the joys and sorrows of life, come what may, and to share the responsibility for growth and enrichment of your life together?

We do.

Then please turn to each other and share your vows.

VOWS

Nick repeat after me…Today I promise you/that though the world may change/ and though we may change with it/

I will always love you/always treasure you/and will share all that I am with you/ I am proud, from this day forward/to be called your husband

Lauren repeat after me…Today I promise you/that though the world may change/ and though we may change with it/

I will always love you/always treasure you/and will share all that I am with you/ I am proud, from this day forward/to be called your wife

RING EXCHANGE (hand over the rings)

For thousands of years, men and women have exchanged rings as a token of their vows.

Let these rings be a sign that your love has a past, a present, and a future.

Nick, take Lauren’s ring and place it on her finger and repeat after me:

I give you this ring/as a sign that I choose you/

To be my wife/my partner/and my best friend/to the end of my days.

Lauren, take Nick’s ring and place it on his finger and repeat after me:

I give you this ring/as a sign that I choose you/

To be my husband/my partner/and my best friend/to the end of my days.

The love already shared by your hearts has been strengthened by the vows you have taken and the rings you have now exchanged.

PRONOUNCEMENT

Nick and Lauren, we have heard your promise to share your lives in marriage. In the honesty and sincerity of what you have said and done here today, and in accordance with the laws of the state of Hawaii, it is my honor and delight to declare you henceforth to be husband and wife.

You may seal your vows with a kiss.