The Little Meeting House in Abington Township has been restored to its former, understated Quaker splendor. The congregation of Quakers who once met here in the 1600’s were a splinter sect of Abington Quaker Meeting (still in existence just down the road). For years this little meeting house was referred to as “The Lost Meeting.”
Many years of work and much money have gone into this restoration. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, through Representative Josh Shapiro, has been instrumental in grant money. There have also been many workers, volunteer and hired.
The Little Meeting House became a project of the Abington Art Center which oversaw every aspect of the restoration. Journeys of the Heart is a business member of the Abington Art Center, whose grounds also include Alverthorpe Manor.
The Little Meeting House will be an exquisite place for small weddings in daylight hours. It will also be perfect for baby blessings, funerals and memorial services.
Some of these pictures were taken at the official housewarming on Thursday, May 20. Others were taken when Diane Smith-Hoban, Journeys of the Heart administrator/officiant and I were given the privilege of a tour several weeks prior.
The Abington Art Center folks are very much looking forward to Journeys of the Heart celebrating all sorts of life occasions in this beautiful old setting.
Sunday May 2, 2010 was a very special day in the life of all who know and love Corina Marie Gutgesell. That was the day of her baby blessing and naming ceremony.
Corina's mom and dad, Greg and Tara were married by Marguerite Sexton and they waited some years before the birth of their beloved Corina Marie. As Tara and Greg told the story at her blessing ceremony, Greg was ready for parenthood before Tara was and it took the birth of Corina's cousin for Tara to realize it was time for them to have a child of their own.
Friends and family gathered at Corina's home in Mount Airy on a beautiful, hot Sunday. The home can easily be identified as Cornia's now, because we all know who it is that runs everything from the moment of birth. So it is with the Gutgesell household. It is happily at the whim of Corina who, by all accounts, is a wonderful and delightful baby. Another part of a baby blessing ceremonies is the telling of the story of the baby's birth and her name. Corina's name was inspired by the song Corina by Taj Mahal.
Corina's Godmother was her Aunt Erin and her Godfather was her Uncle Jeff. Both read wonderful passages about their hopes for Corina.
Everyone present placed a flower petal in a bowl of water and silently offered a thought, prayer, hope or wish for Corina.
The highlight of a baby blessing ceremony is telling the child her name.
Corina was told her name by her Uncle Colin who sang the song Corina to her. As he sang, Corina, all of four months old, watched in delight and danced in her father's arms as she listened to her song. She enchanted everyone present.
As Corina was hearing the song of her name, I carried the bowl of flower water around the room and sprinkled everyone with it, as it contained all the love, hope and prayers of everyone there.
Corina was anointed with oil by her parents, godparents, aunt and uncle and grandparents, through the touching of her eyes, heart, ears, hands and feet.
Here is the passage that was read to remind everyone that Corina will have both roots and wings as she grows:
There are many paths, and each must find their own; therefore, we do not seek to bind Corina to any one path while she is still too young to choose; rather do we ask that Corina be blessed and protected and prepared through the years of childhood so that when at last she is truly grown, she may know without doubt or fear which path is hers and shall tread it gladly.
This new child has come into the world. She is a gift of hope and of promise not only to those of us here today, but also to all of those whose lives she will touch in the future. We rejoice for Corina, her parents, her grandparents, godparents, and for all of us who will assuredly be enriched by her presence among us.
Welcome to the world Corina Marie. My prayer would be that every child would be surrounded by the wonderful, conscious, loving and funny parents that you have. They have been so blessed by your birth, but you were sure smart to choose them!
Saturday night, May 1, was the Equality Forum Dinner at the National Constitution Center. Journeys of the Heart was well represented there by Officiant/Administrator Diane Smith-Hoban, Journeys of the Heart Officiant Bob Pileggi, Journeys of the Heart Bride of 5 years ago Alaina Eichinger and Executive Director/Officiant Marguerite Sexton. This was the first time that Journeys of the Heart hosted an entire table of our own and we were so pleased to welcome into our midst Vice-President for Public Safety of the University of Pennsylvania Maureen Rush, Catholic priest Frank Sacks, attorney/nurse Carolyn Coleman Abington Township Commissioner Les Benzak. Thanks to Frank Sacks for presenting me with the beautiful orchid center piece which he won which now graces my window sill.
The evening began with an open bar and butlered hors d’ouvres on the first level . The dinner was served on the mezzanine . Large screens were placed throughout in order to give everyone a view of the events. The event was sold out.
The honorees for the evening were David Boies and Ted Olson who received the 15th annual International Role Model Award and CNN with the 8th annual International Business Leadership Award. Boies and Olson are considered to be the top two attorneys in the country (one liberal and one conservative) and are working together to overturn the Defense of Marriage Act (Proposition 8 ) in California. Also honored was Tony Maddox, Executive Vice President and Managing Director, CNN International will accept the award on behalf of CNN who has done more than any other media outlet to educate the public regarding issues surrounding being gay in America. (In June they will air a program called Gay in America.) U.S. Senator Bob Casey and Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, served as Honorary Dinner Chairs. (The place was crawling with politicians, all Caucasian Democrats. At least that I could see.)
One of the highlights of the event was a public commitment ceremony during Sunday Out at the Piazza on Sunday May 2. Journeys of the Heart has been at the forefront of the rights of gays to marry since our incorporation in 1996. I felt more than a little frustrated that there was a huge public commitment ceremony that seemed to be headed up by only traditional clergy. I plan to suggest to them that perhaps next year they might consider a secular commitment ceremony. I watched the very moving video of the ceremony on the Equality Forum web site but could not hear how the clergy handled religious language. Here’s hoping they managed it as carefully and as tenderly as Journeys of the Heart officiants would, although I somehow doubt it.
In 2011, I am hoping to have 1 ½ tables of Journeys of the Heart attendees there. Somehow I have a feeling that none of those traditional clergy people were hosting a table for 10! Check out the Equality Forum web site at www.equalityforum.com to view the public commitment ceremony. It’s very well done and so worth watching.
It just doesn't get much better than that! A gorgeous, cloudless day, a beautiful bride in an expansive green meadow, and the sounds of live music filling the air. Saturday, April 24th took me to The Cascade Lodge in a small town named Kinternsville, PA, a short turn off of Route 611, which meanders along the Delaware River.
Paula Ansari and Michael Shea's ceremony began with a quote. Not from someone famous, but from a fortune cookie they opened 3 days after meeting one another. "Stop searching forever. Happiness if just next to you."
The ceremony had many personal elements including a dedication to Paula's horse, Whiskers, the inclusion of their mother's for a Native American sand ceremony, and live music.
The reason I am happy to focus on the live music aspect of the ceremony is a bit biased as my husband, Stan Stewart provided the sounds with guitar and voice. Besides that though, I love the addition of live music for outdoor ceremonies as I believe it really enhances the natural setting and adds a dimension and depth that is hard to capture with recorded music.
Stan told me afterwards that he felt tremendously inspired by the couple, their family and friends, as well as the setting. He was able to capture those feelings as he sang for Paula and Michael during their unity ritual. There was not a dry eye in the meadow! I also had a moment when I needed the music to continue beyond the end of the bridesmaids procession, as the walk was much longer than anticipated. I was easily able to let Stan know that we needed more music and he simply looped around to the chorus again. Live music can also be a plus when the moments of improvisation are needed in a ceremony. Which believe it or not, are often!
I hope our Journeys of the Heart couples will consider live musicians for their wedding day. We are always happy to assist our couples as they make the important decisions about what to include in their personalized, custom created ceremonies. We love our work!
It's no surprise that the bride often steals the show on her wedding day. That's as it should be, some might say.
But I've found there to be another moment in the ceremony that leaves guests just a little breathless or perhaps more teary-eyed.
And that's when the groom sheds a tear or two!
And yes, it's been known to happen to the most stoic of grooms, the ones who swear they're not emotional, the ones who laughingly dismiss their bride's suggestion that they may need a hankie as we begin planning their wedding ceremony during our consultation. Some are so unabashedly in love with their brides and so deeply grateful for the connection they share that I get a glimpse of this emotion during our meeting. So if they become a little choked up during the ceremony, I'm not surprised. I can still remember one groom who actually leaned over to ask me if I had a tissue mid-ceremony because he couldn't keep the tears from streaming down his face.
But I can assure you that whatever awkwardness or discomfort he may have been feeling at such a show of emotion, the guests observing it were even more moved than before, more caught up in the richness of what they were witnessing.
For those guys who tend to "keep it together" or are more private about their feelings, to see them so overcome by the profound depths of what they're experiencing is a beautiful, heartfelt moment.
I'm not saying that every groom will be reduced to quiet, seemingly undignified blubbering on his wedding day (and let's face it, there's nothing undignified about it), but I'm just giving fair warning: Guys, there's something about seeing your minutes-to-be wife in her wedding dress standing before you pledging her entire being to the life you are building together that's staggering — staggeringly moving and beautiful.
So don't be afraid of a little waterworks. She's got the dress, after all, and after hearing all the comments about how gorgeous she looks once the ceremony is over, I can just bet that the second thing everyone else will be talking about is how absolutely touched they were when the groom began to cry.
The difference is huge and vast! Journeys of the Heart was founded because civil ceremonies, while providing a legal wedding ceremony, do just that and only that.
In the case of a civil ceremony presided by a judge, a district judge or a justice of the peace or mayor, the person arrives at the venue with his or her little black book of civil ceremonies, reads all of the requisite words, proclaims the couple husband and wife (or for same sex couples in New Jersey, “united in civil union” – whatever that means). Journeys of the Heart weddings, in contrast, are a complete honoring and celebration of all that this union has been, is and will be.
We create a ceremony based upon who you are, not simply what state statutes require. Make no mistake; we honor the wedding and civil union statutes of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and elsewhere. We just know that most people hope for something sweeter and more romantic than they can offer.
Also, many people do not realize that judges, mayors and the like in Pennsylvania are strictly prohibited from accepting any personal fee whatsoever for performing wedding ceremonies. Neither is it legal to elicit, encourage or accept a check to his/her favorite charity. So unless people are being united in the judge’s chamber and the judge or mayor is presiding at a wedding ceremony elsewhere strictly as a favor, the acceptance of any fees whatsoever is strictly illegal! We regret to say that we hear of many who do accept fees.
We believe it is simply not a good idea to begin married life by paying someone who is accepting money illegally.
