Rozalyn Louise Mendence

I wrote this section:

Rick & Debbie ~

Welcome to your wedding celebration!! It’s finally here!!

On behalf of Rick & Debbie, I would like to personally thank each of you for joining us today.

My name is Rozalyn Mendence, and I am Rick’s cousin. I am extremely honored to be standing here today to unite these two amazing people for eternity.

I would like to begin with you Rick………

Through the many years I have watched you as a son, a brother, an uncle, even to my own children, a nephew, a cousin, a friend, a boyfriend and now a Fiance. You demonstrate enormous strength & courage, overflowing love & generosity, dedication & loyalty, gratitude & faith……. Just to mention a few. All of which are qualities necessary in being a true husband. Your love of family & children of all ages demonstrates your ability to be not just a father figure to Alyssa and Sarah, but a loyal friend. You have shared with me on many occasions your love for Nana. As her son-in-law and her “Cooker Boy,” it is your responsibility to prepare the meals Nana desires and make her the cocktails of her choice the second you walk in the door after your day at work. It is with the utmost confidence you join this family and bring nothing but a lifetime of laughter, joy, love, compassion & strength. I know you will provide for your new family in every way and be there for them at all times.

Debbie……………………..

From the moment Rick introduced you to our family, I knew this was something so very special and unique. Your warmth, laughter, free spirit and love of family was very visible. I must say that to fit into this crazy family would not normally be an easy task, however, you conquered with such ease. As a mother, a daughter, a sister, a teacher and a friend, I have seen you excel in all areas. Your loyalty, faith, trust and dedication is so admirable. Listening to you converse with Sarah, Alyssa and Nana, the warmth of your soft voice and genuine love for those you care about is to be desired. You’re a woman of truth, sincerity, loyalty, love and compassion, perfect for this man. For those of you that know Debbie at all, she is the “SELFIE QUEEN!” Sooooooo, I thought it would only be appropriate on her wedding day as she is marrying the man of her dreams……

REACH FOR PHONE AND TAKE SELFIE OF RICK DEBBIE & GUESTS.

As a couple, your fundamentals and values are so parallel. I ask you both to listen carefully….

Love is patient, Love is kind, It does not envy, It does not boast. It is not proud, It is not self seeking, It is not easily angered. It keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always preservers.

1Cor.13

Rick & Debbie wrote this:

We have gathered today in the love of friendship and family to celebrate the blending together of two lives.

As Rick and Debbie come before you here today as two, they will leave this place as one, united in marriage.

As family and friends, each of you has played some part in bringing them to this moment and in various ways will continue to support and contribute to their relationship.

We solemnize this unique time in their lives and make it meaningful by entering into it in an attitude of respect for their deep commitment to each other.

Rick and Debbie, you realize that in a greater sense no other person or officiant can truly marry you. Only you can marry yourselves.

By your commitment to love each other, and to work with all your hearts toward creating an atmosphere of care and respect, and by your willingness to face together the fears and uncertainty that underlie life, you marry yourselves more surely than any document we will put our signatures on today.

Your love for one another and your willingness to accept each other’s strength and frailties with understanding and consideration will form the foundation for a life together that will last.

Today you commit yourselves to honoring and protecting one another above your separate selves, and to valuing your union above your own interests.

In so doing, you will find a wealth of love and peace not otherwise attainable. But with this joy comes a profound responsibility to protect the bond you share. For it is only with continual care that your love is truly secure in the face of life's inevitable tests.

You must regard each other with the deepest respect.

You must appreciate each other's talents, foster each other's dreams, and be ever mindful of the many gifts that the other offers you.

You must inspire and encourage one another. For by strengthening your spouse, you strengthen your marriage.

Bring out the very best in each other. Be sparing in criticism and generous in praise for things well done.

In communication, be honest and open. For the heart that communicates truth without hesitation earns trust and builds a secure home. With truth comes respect, and with respect, love grows.

So accept your marriage as a work-in-progress that will hereafter consume your attention, and yet never be completed. Because, a lifelong love, requires a lifetime of hard work. But it is a joyous labor, whose fruits are the very richest.

A vast, unknown future stretches out before you.

That future, with its hopes and disappointments, its joys and its sorrows, is hidden from your eyes. But it is a great tribute to your belief in each other that you are willing to face those uncertainties together.

May the pure, simple love with which you join your hearts and hands today never fail, but grow only deeper and surer with every year you spend together.

I Rick take you Debbie to be my wife.

I promise to live in truth with you,

and I give you my hand and my heart

as a sanctuary of warmth and peace,

pledging you my love and devotion

as I join my life to yours.

I Debbie take you Rick to be my husband.

I promise to live in truth with you,

and I give you my hand and my heart

as a sanctuary of warmth and peace,

pledging you my love and devotion

as I join my life to yours.

For thousands of years lovers have exchanged rings as a token of their vows.

These simple gold bands are not of great value in and of themselves, but they are made quite precious by your wearing of them.

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

and that, despite its occasional sorrows, love is a circle of joyous wonder, and delight.

Rick take Debbie's ring and place it on her finger and repeat after me:

Just as this circle is without end, my love for you is never-ending.

With this ring, I take you to be my partner for life.

Debbie take Rick's ring and place it on his finger and repeat after me:

Just as this circle is without end, my love for you is never-ending.

With this ring, I take you to be my partner for life.

In as much as you have sealed your vows in the presence of those gathered here by the giving of these rings and have consented together to live in marriage, it gives me much pleasure to pronounce that you are now Husband and Wife. Rick, you may kiss your bride!

It is great pleasure to introduce to you for the first time......

Mr. & Mrs. Rick Jury!!