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Getting Started on Your Wedding
Your wedding and marriage should reflect the uniqueness of
your relationship, capturing the essence of your life together
Our wedding services are designed to help you design:
- your ceremony that is beautiful, elegant, reverent, yet fun, that is uniquely you.
- your ceremony that reflects the personal values and spirituality that you both share.
Step One: Before you Reserve Your Date with Forever Ministries
- Request your FREE Personalized Wedding Planner with great ceremony ideas.
- You can meet with Pastor, face-to-face and free of charge before you make any decision. We want you to be totally comfortable, at ease and confident that you can trust us with one of the most visible and critically important parts of your ceremony and marriage. Even, if your wedding is being planned many months from now, we would suggest that we set up this meeting as soon as possible, so that you can rest assured that you have the right officiant for your special day. Click here to have Pastor call you to give you an opportunity to set up your free personal introductory meeting.
Step Two: Reserve Your Date with Forever Ministries
- To reserve your date and time simply requires a $75.00 deposit. We serve on a first come first serve basis, and once you've secured your date and time we will not book another ceremony that would conflict with your date and time
Step Three: Premarital Coaching and Ceremony Planning Sessions.
- The next step, usually about a month or two before the ceremony, is for us to meet for two premarital coaching sessions.
- These sessions serve three purposes:
- Using two of the premier marriage counseling programs we seek to give you some lifelong tools that you can add to your relationship to help your marriage endure forever. Click here to discover more about the Premarital Coaching Planner we use.
- Personalization: these sessions truly allow Pastor to really get to know you (and for you to get to know Pastor) preparing the way to help make your wedding service unique personal and special.
- A good or great wedding does not happen by itself. It takes a lot of planning and coordination. Because of the central role the officiant plays in the organization and presentation of the ceremony, these meetings are essential to a memorable service done with excellence.
We have a lot of experience of doing "long-distance" wedding preparation, from Coast to Coast and even from Continent to Continent. While these meetings are essential to preparing for your wedding, we have a special understanding and flexibility with our couples that are planning Iowa weddings from the distance. We look forward to working with your special needs and concerns.
Click here to find our more information about the resources we use for Premarital Coaching Sessions.
Step Four: Rehearsal
Although it is not absolutely essential to do a rehearsal at the wedding site, if at all possible we would suggest you plan for a wedding rehearsal. It may be more valuable if you have a large wedding party or children in the wedding the party, but we have found that everyone benefits from this time to prepare. The rehearsal prepares not only for the service but for the significance of your wedding day.
We also suggest that everyone who is in the wedding ceremony,…from ushers, candle lighters to the bride and groom, be present at the rehearsal. However, sometimes one or several members simply can't be present... don't be overly concerned. We will leave a space for each of them and ask those who are present on either side to cue him and her in on the wedding day. Those present at the rehearsal will pay extra attention, and those missing will get the word, and you won't have to worry.
Because of the number of weddings we do and the experience we have, we usually play a significant role in the organization and steps taken during the rehearsal practice... while making it clear that the bride and groom our/is our "boss"! With our familiarity and attention to detail we have the experience to work effectively with your site managers and wedding planners.
Step Five: License and Payment
During, or right before, the rehearsal practice we ask that the balance of our fees and honorariums be paid and that you present the original copy of your marriage license to Pastor. Click here to find out how to get an Iowa Marriage License.
Fees and Honorariums Table: |
|
|---|---|
| Deposit: Reserves your dates and times: | $75.00 |
| Consultation/Ceremony Planning Sessions, $25.00 Each, Minimum 2: | $50.00 |
| Rehearsal Services | $50.00 |
| Officiating Minister – Minimum suggested honorarium: | $200.00 |
Step Six: Your Wedding Day
Fully prepared we will finish with a ceremony that your friends and family will remember forever!
You will have an experienced, professional officiant who is focused on you and knows you and your needs.
Your officiant will be available via cell phone and arrive in plenty of time to assure you that you can be at peace knowing where they are and that they will be on time.
Your officiant will provide you with the reassurance, direction, warmth and presence to put you, your friends and your family at ease.
Your officiant will ensure that the license and legal requirements are handled correctly and mail them to the proper State and County Vital Records Recorder.
Your ceremony will be conducted with professional personalization and our goal - as always - is having everyone tell you how much they adored your ceremony and how much it truly celebrated you... the bride and groom!
Step Seven: Send your memories.
We take our services to heart, we become emotionally involved with you and your family and each wedding is special to us. After your wedding we want to hear from you. Please send us a picture of you (Bride and Groom), Pastor and your wedding party during your ceremony that shares the beauty of the moment, and the location and special venue that you have selected for your wedding. Send a note of appreciation and post your reference on this website. Click here for Weddings, Past, Present and Future!
P.S. - The secret to a perfect wedding is to:
- Choose the ideal location and venue where you and your guests will be comfortable and celebrates your love.
- Choose an experienced, reliable, and caring officiant who takes pride in celebrating God created love and marriage and is committed to praying for your marriage to be a forever marriage.
- Share in the planning and fulfillment of a custom-made, individually tailored ceremony and vows, which reflect you and your love!