Barbara Densmore - Contemporary Minister/Celebrant & Wedding Officiant

Meaningful.Memorable.Unstuffy.Truly You

  • Home
  • About
    • About Me
    • The New Thought Community
  • Weddings
    • How We Work
    • The #1 Wedding Ceremony
    • Weddings with History
    • Same-sex weddings
    • Wee Weddings/Group Elopements
    • Elope to Vancouver Island
    • Vow renewals
    • Ceremony/vow writing
  • Memorials
    • Ash scatterings, memorial plantings/dedications
    • Celebrations of life
    • Predesigned memorials
  • Other Ceremonies
    • New Motherhood
    • Baby Welcomes
    • Moves
    • Divorce
    • Women’s Rites of Passage
    • Retirement
  • Blog
    • Weddings
    • Memorials
    • Other Ceremonies
  • Contact Me
    • Wedding Enquiries
    • Enquiries For Other Ceremonies

Laura and Hugh: Pure Boundless Joy

June 13, 2013 By Barbara Densmore Leave a Comment

When Laura contacted me about 8 weeks before their wedding, she said that although she had been planning their wedding for almost a year, something felt missing. Everything else was done, but she didn’t feel like she was getting married. Her intended – Hugh – would support her, but his experience of ceremonies was more of the “rubber stamp” variety.

Our initial chat unearthed this: Hugh and Laura wanted their ceremony to reach out and gather everyone in its embrace. To share their love and joy with the people who mattered the most to them. To really feel like they were getting married. And of course…to enjoy it.

With all that in mind, we went to work. The couple put themselves into co-creating their ceremony with gusto. And it showed.

Laura.Hugh.mumPure boundless  joy. These images perfectly capture the essence of the ceremony, the couple, and the people who love them.

“Laura, there wasn’t a pivotal moment that told you ‘this is the one‘. You just slowly realized that you were already committed.You had already assessed Hugh from your “must-have” boyfriend qualities list, and he’d scored 100%. But somehow, it was clear from the beginning that this was totally different from any other relationship you had ever had…Hugh had a big heart, full of love, and yours recognized it.”

Given that Laura is a massage therapist, it was only natural that guests all actually had “a hand” in getting her married to Hugh. (pic below)

Laura Hugh handsPure boundless joy.

“And one day, many many years from now, perhaps you’ll be back here at St. Ann’s Academy, sitting together right in this very spot, holding hands just like now, contented, calm and secure together.   

And may younger couples look at you and think: “that’s who I want to be.”

.

.

Laura and Hugh, so happy you chose me. Honoured. Grateful. And still smiling when I recall this magical moment in time.

You can see more of Ryan Macdonald’s uber-amazing photos (including many wonderful shots of the happy couple) on her blog post. 

Filed Under: Weddings Tagged With: Novitiate Garden wedding, St Ann's Academy, Victoria BC, wedding ceremony

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Barbara Densmore, Celebrant & Officiant Reviews
 
WeddingWire Barbara Densmore, Wedding Celebrant & Officiant Reviews, Best Wedding Officiants in British Columbia - 2015 Couples' Choice Award Winner
 
Weddings, Wedding Venues Barbara Densmore, Professional Celebrant & Wedding Officiant, Best Wedding Officiants in British Columbia - 2014 Couples' Choice Award Winner
Weddings, Wedding Venues Barbara Densmore, Professional Celebrant & Wedding Officiant, Best Wedding Officiants in British Columbia - 2013 Bride's Choice Award Winner




Read our reviews in  

Recent Posts

  • Celebrating Pete the Pirate
  • Mature Weddings
  • Weddings with Kids
  • B&D: Surprise Us!
  • Heather and Erin: it’s Gonna Happen

Testimonials

We’re so grateful for the great job you did in pulling together our lives and making our ceremony so personal, so thoughtful, so us. The good feelings and emotions that blossomed that day continue to linger in our every day lives and you played a really important role in that, so thanks. You were great and able to go with the flow, which was so important to us.  
Jackie & Sylvie's 4 year old son helped to marry them
Our day was more than we could have asked for because of Barbara – the ceremony was the perfect mix of funny, touching, meaningful and memorable.  
Wedding Photographer J
People had great things to say about the ceremony – they loved that it was a reflection of us – so thank you so much for making that happen.  It filled us with joy.
Thank you again for helping make our day so incredibly memorable – words can’t express how blessed we felt on Sunday.
Jaylene & Greg's surprise wedding
Everyone was talking about it for the rest of the night — how different and heartfelt it was — even a few of the guys said it was, by far, the best wedding ceremony they’d ever been to… THE GUYS… I think that says it all. 🙂  
Wedding Photographer A
Throughout the journey of co-creating, Barbara deeply listened, guided, and supported us to make meaningful creative choices that honoured ourselves, invited guests/witnesses, and our new home.  
J&J's House Blessing
This was the kind of ceremony that Dad would have loved. He would have loved to be here. It was a perfect fit for him. Jan  
GS's Celebration of Life
“I am SO very happy that I did the ceremony. I feel like my work with you cauterized what would have otherwise been an open wound. I can’t thank you enough…”  
A's Divorce Ceremony
We have had so much positive feedback regarding it being the best wedding ever!  The ceremony was even more memorable and meaningful than I could have imagined! I don’t think there was a dry eye there!  
T&D, mature couple with kids and awesome stories
People enjoyed the ceremony just as much as the reception.    
Danielle and Marc’s ceremony included a modern version of a ritual from her mother’s wedding ceremony
It was a perfect balance of poignant, comical and thought-provoking. Maggie  
G's Memorial Tree Planting

Recent Comments

  • Gwen on Margaret and Jamie: Introverts Unite!
  • Michele Davidson on Handfasting 101

Copyright © 2019 · Barbara Densmore