Wedding ALT

Wedding bells are in the air, but you might hear them at your local court house.

Wedding bells are in the air, but you might hear them at your local court house.

The covid-19 pandemic has forced restrictions on the size of social gatherings and shuttered many of the venues that usually host weddings and receptions.

Our stephanie poole takes a look at what some couples are doing.

" we wanted to find in as much time possible to not have to worry about this anymore."

May 23rd was supposed to be the biggest day of tessa berrymans life, walking down the aisle to get married.

But with threats of covid-19, her fairy-tale story turned into a nightmare.

" on february 1st he actually proposed in font of all of our friends.

We had the date picked and i went and bought the dress.

My dress got botched and the same week i got a new dress that wasn't messed up and fit like a glove,the pandemic hit."

That's when the berryman's planned an intimate ceremony and moved their wedding plans to october.

" we got a marriage license.

One of our friends agreed to be ordained.

We asked them would you agree to come to our house on may 19th and their like yeah of course 'if you guys are getting married we wouldn't miss it.'

So we went out on the backyard and we had our dog and our parents, and a couple of our closest friends and that was it."

And they aren't the only couple using an alternative ways to tie the knot.

Lowndes county district 5 supervisor,leroy brooks says he's officiated a small number of marriages since the pandemic started.

" i've noticed a change because it's not unusual to marry 10 to 15 couples a week.

Now, it's been down to a couple every two weeks.

I believe i married two couples last week and i just married a couple this morning, so i see the push back also."

Brooks says to keep everyone safe and healthy during the ceremony, he's tries to use social distancing.

"sometimes there are groups.

I've had as many as 25 in a groups and so we do it outside."

As for the berryman's, even though schedules have changed and deposits are lost, their love for each other remains the same.

" we'll still do a ceremony and we'll still do a ring exchange, and we'll still cut the cake and have toast and what not because we didn't do that this go round.

I'm actually quite anxious to put my dress on and see him in his suit and have him walk down the aisle and be there.

Reporting in lowndes county, stephanie poole, wcbi news.

Brooks says having your marriage officiated at the court house will cost around 20 dollars.

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