Jaci and Martin came to New York this Summer to get married. They are from Runcorn in the UK and first met in 1985 when they worked together. At the time they were both in other relationships, then Martin left that place of work in 1987 and they did not see each other again for around eighteen years. They bumped in to each other and chatted, but nothing more happened.
Then they met again in 2012 through Facebook. By this time they were both single, though they had both recently got out of marriages that had ended painfully. Martin invited Jaci to go with him to see his son play in his band in the nearby city of Liverpool. They had fun together and agreed to see more shows together as friends.
Jaci visited New York City with some of her friends for her fiftieth birthday and she loved it. Martin missed her desperately while she was away and was waiting for her in the arrivals hall when she returned with a big bouquet of flowers. She told him all about New York and how she would love to go back there with him one day.
Martin admits that his was not one of the most romantic of proposals. He had started divorce proceedings against his wife and suggested to Jaci in passing that perhaps she should divorce her husband and marry him. Jaci thought that was a great idea and she said yes.
I asked Martin why marriage was important to them and he said “I wholly believe in it. I believe that if you want to share everything with the person that you love; the good times, the bad, the ups, the downs, then sharing a name is also a logical step to take.”
Both their first marriages were in churches and neither of them wanted to do that again. They considered marrying in a castle, but that seemed too expensive. Of course, New York is expensive but at least you get a vacation while you are visiting. They considered Hawaii or the Caribbean, but they did not like the idea of the long flight time from the UK. Also, they worried that purchasing a wedding from a large travel agent in a far away beach destination might lead to a “production line” fell where several couples get married within a short space of time, and by the same officiant, with nothing personalized in the ceremony. Then they remembered Jaci telling Martin how much she wanted to show him New York City. She had loved Central Park when she was there, so they checked to see if it is possible to get married there and of course; you can!
I asked if they had any concerns about their wedding, and they said that they had felt some concern with sending me the deposit when they did not know me, but they said that my website, blog and Facebook page did much to help them to trust me. I completely understand people feeling this way, which is why I try to put as much information on past weddings out there in the public domain as I can.
They were also worried that their divorces were not finalized before their wedding date. As it turned out they were not, but because we are a small company so I can stay flexible I was able to reschedule their wedding date for them with no issues.
They stayed for a whopping two weeks at The Pierre on East 61st and 5th Avenue, directly opposite Central Park. They said that the hotel was luxurious beyond belief and made their trip complete.
It would be just the two of them at their wedding so they chose the Ladies’ Pavilion because it seemed to them that it would be the most intimate. Although they eloped, Martin said that all of their friends and family were very supportive of their decision to get married in Central Park, and many of them said how jealous they were. They chose not to have a professional photographer, but their witness recorded the ceremony for them. Jaci wore a strapless, sleeveless ivory traditional dress with a train. She carried a bouquet of pink roses which they chose at the last minute from a florist near to their hotel. Martin had taken a three-piece suit to wear, but because it was so hot, he left the jacket at the hotel and wore a short sleeved shirt, tie, waistcoat and trousers.
They had a room service breakfast on their wedding day, and then went to Swarovski for Jaci to choose some jewelry as Martin’s wedding present to her. They popped back to the hotel to get ready, went to the Park, got married, and shortly after arriving back at the hotel, they were brought a bottle of champagne and strawberries covered in chocolate. After a quick change of clothes, they went out for a Chinese meal near Madison Square Gardens where they saw Katy Perry in concert that evening.
I asked them is they have any other thoughts on marrying in Central Park that they would like to share and Martin said “if you are even thinking about it – do it!!! We don’t regret a single moment of it. It was the perfect setting, the perfect day and an overall perfect start to the rest of our lives together.”
For more information on planning your own Central Park wedding, visit our website, or “like” us on Facebook for photos and more inspiring stories. About the service from Wed in Central Park, Martin said “we would highly recommend you to anyone who wanted help with arranging their wedding. We threw you a couple of curved balls with various questions over the nine months between initial contact and our big day, but you handled everything professionally and ensured that we had a day to remember forever!” Thank you for sharing your story with us, Martin and Jaci, and I wish you lots of luck for the future, congratulations!
