Deanna Dingmann

WELCOME EVERYONE! We are here today in the presence of family and friends to share with the Bride and Groom the most important moment in their lives. We do this as the legal requirement but this ceremony does not alter the love required to be husband and wife. Without the love between these two people we would not be here today.

It has been said that marriage is that relationship between man and woman in which the independence is equal, the dependence mutual and the obligation reciprocal. --Carrie-- and --Peter you are now to bring together the best parts of your individuality, uniting spirit, talent and experience to create something better than either of you alone can offer. You must, and I’m sure will, work hard to maintain this union.

By this ceremony you will become husband and wife, but the soul of your marriage depends on the constant renewal of the choices and promises out of love for one another you make today.

Life together will sometimes be playful and effortless, sometimes frustrating and difficult. Each day your relationship will strengthen if you choose to continue to love and honor one another.

Love is something beyond the excitement of romance and being in love. It is a committed, thoughtful decision. Love is nurturing. Love is listening. Love is caring about your partner. Love lightens burdens because you divide them. Love intensifies joys because you share them.

If you truly love, you will always be loyal to one another. No matter what the cost, always believe in one another, always expect the best of one another and above all else, always support one another in everyday living.

Peter and Carrie came together as friends. Today, they pledge to each other not only their love, but also the strength, warmth and most importantly, the fun of true friendship.

The step which you are about to take is the most important into which human beings can come. It is a union of two people founded upon mutual respect and affection. Your lives will change, your responsibilities will increase, but your joy will be multiplied if you are sincere and earnest with your pledge to one another.

It is the wish of everyone here today that your marriage bring each of you much happiness. Happiness in marriage doesn’t just happen though. You must work on it. Remember to say “I love you”, hold hands whenever you get the chance, and at no time take the other for granted.

Family and friends, we are witnesses to the union of two individuals who choose to commit to a life together. Our responsibility as their friends and witnesses is to provide them as a couple with our love, support and approval. For the beauty around us, the strength it offers and the peace it brings, we are grateful and honored.

The Hands Passage

Please face each other and hold hands, so you may feel the gift that you are to one another. These are the hands of your best friend, young and strong and full of love for you, that hold yours on your wedding day as you promise to love each other today, tomorrow and forever.

These are the hands that will work alongside yours as together you build your future. These are the hands that will passionately love you and cherish you through the years, and with the slightest touch will comfort you like no other,

These are the hands that will hold you when fear or grief wracks your mind. These are the hands that will countless times wipe the tears from your eyes, tears of sorrow and tears of joy.

These are the hands that will tenderly hold your children. These are the hands that will help you to hold your family as one.

These are the hands that will give you strength when you need it. And lastly, these are the hands that even when wrinkled and aged, will still be reaching for yours, still giving you the same unspoken tenderness with just a touch.

Please repeat after me. (Vows)

I, (Peter), take you, (Carrie), to be my (wife/husband), knowing in my heart that you will be a faithful friend, and a loving companion. I give to you my sacred vow that I will always be with you and support you, in times of sickness and in health, in times of joy and in sorrow. I promise to love you completely, to console and comfort you during difficult times, to laugh with you and to grieve with you, to share with you life's simplest but most enduring pleasures, to be truthful and honest with you, and to cherish you, for as long as we both shall live.

Rings please...

It is a Christian custom to exchange rings as a symbol of love. As the rings have no end so your love should have no end. As the rings are made of gold/silver symbolizing purity, so should your marriage have purity. As often as either of you see them, you will be reminded of this moment and the endless love you promised.

Place the ring on the bride’s finger and say: With this ring, I thee wed. Place the ring on the groom’s finger and say: With this ring, I thee wed.

In as much as Bride and Groom have consented together in wedlock and have witnessed the same before this company, and pledged their vows to each other, by the authority vested in me by the State of Minnesota, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride.

I now present to you, Mr. & Mrs. Peter Ratka