Reverend A. Childress

Handfasting Ceremony

Procession & Greeting

Family, Friends and loved ones.

Thank you for joining us on this beautiful day as Amber and Ray take yet another step in their lives together.

By your presence, you celebrate with them the love they have discovered in each other and support their decision to commit themselves to one another for the rest of their lives.

This afternoon we are here to celebrate love. We come together to witness and proclaim the joining together of this couple in marriage.

Declaration Of Intent

Ray , do you take Amber to be your lawful wedded wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, in good health and bad, for richer or poorer, forsaking all others until death do you part? I DO

Amber, do you take Ray to be your lawful wedded husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, in good health and bad, for richer or poorer, forsaking all others until death do you part? I DO

Vow and Ring Exchange

May we have the rings?

Please turn and face each other.

Ray, please place your ring on Amber's left finger and repeat these vows after me:

I Ray, take you Amber to be my wife, my constant friend and partner, and my love.

I vow to honor and respect you for all that you are, taking pride in who we are, both separately and together. Above all, I will give you my love freely and unconditionally. I give you this ring, as a daily reminder of my love for you.

Amber, please place your ring on Ray's left finger and repeat these vows after me:

I Amber , take you Ray to be my husband, my constant friend and partner, and my love.

I vow to honor and respect you for all that you are, taking pride in who we are, both separately and together. Above all, I will give you my love freely and unconditionally. I give you this ring, as a daily reminder of my love for you.

Handfasting

Amber and Ray have chosen to honor their heritage with a handfasting ceremony. Handfasting is an ancient Celtic wedding tradition that has come to be interpreted literally, as the symbolic act of “tying the knot.”

Ray and Amber, now that your vows of love have been spoken, I ask that you cross your arms, and take each other’s hands. By joining your hands in this manner, you create the sign of infinity, so may your love for one another have no limits, and your time together have no end. (release your right hands holding only your left together)

(I ask now that the children join us, placing one cord over the other representing their acceptance of their newly joined family as one and to bind the lives of Ray and Amber from this day forward.)

Ray and Amber: We chose Blue for the longevity and strength in our marriage and our lives as we face challenges together.

Echo: I chose white for peace and devotion in our home.

Peyton: I chose purple for strength and power in our family.

Killian: I chose grey for balance and neutrality in our life.

Brittanie: I chose Orange for encouragement so you can encourage each other to be better and continue to get better together.

Adaptability, because I know you can take whatever comes at you and turn it for the better.

Stimulation, Attraction, Plenty and Kindness to continue in to be happy and make each other happy.

*Marital Cord: This cord symbolizes a lifetime unity and the everlasting love and commitment of Amber and Ray as they become husband and wife.

May these hands be blessed this day. May they always hold each other. May they have the strength to hang on during the storms of stress and the dark of disillusionment. May they remain tender and gentle as they nurture each other in their wondrous love. May they build a relationship founded in love, and rich in caring. May these hands be healer, protector, shelter, and guide for each other.

These cords are a symbol of the life you have chosen to live together joining two families as one. Up until this moment you have been separate in thought, word, and deed. As the cords are tied together, so shall your lives become intertwined.

With these cords, I bind you to the vows that you have made to one another. With this knot, I tie you heart to heart, together as one. The promises made today and the ties that are bound here greatly strengthen your union and will cross the years and lives of each soul’s growth.

(Together remove your hands step backwards and pull in towards your belly making a knot)

Keep this knot safe and may it never come undone and

let it always be a reminder to you of the bond and commitment

you have made here today.

Pronouncement

Ray and Amber, on behalf of all those present, and by the strength of your own love, and through the great State of Wyoming, I now pronounce you husband and wife.

You may now seal your marital bond with a kiss.

Congratulations

It is now my honor to present to you for the first time, Mr. & Mrs. Ray & Amber Malone