As we all know COVID 19 on the minds of everyone around the world. It has changed and disrupted lives everywhere. Many couples have had to change their wedding plans, postponing or going to a Plan B.
Today we are bringing you the story of Victoria and Jerrod. Like so many out there, they had been planning their wedding for awhile and were counting down the day until their destination wedding in Vegas on April 4th. When the Coronovirus started making it’s way to the states it became clear that their original plan was going to have to wait as traveling for everyone wasn’t an option and states were starting to do a stay at home orders.
So they decided to get married asap before that wasn’t even an option anymore and with the help of their photographer, Dani Fine, and many other vendors they pulled off an amazing elopement! They were even able to live stream it for their friends and family to watch remotely!
It has been so encouraging to see how the wedding industry has bonded together during this time to help couples navigate through this wild time. Yes many things have been forced to change, but love always wins!
***Please note that this elopement was done before any stay at home orders were issued for their state. We do not and will not promote anyone who is out photographing or doing weddings/elopements against the orders issued by their state and/or the CDC. As much as we hate it, photography is non-essential. Please stay at home and stay safe! ****
Scroll down for photos and an article about them and their day!
Photography: Dani Fine Photography and Image Studio
Planner: Tara Consolati
Florist : Carolyn Valenti Flowers
Venue: Blantyre
Videography : Summer Wind Wedding Films
Cake: Rebecca Taylor
Below is an article written by Stephanie Barry for Mass Live about their day!
They met while she was studying for her master’s degree in Norfolk, Virginia — she a mental health counselor, and he a U.S. Army sergeant.
They were engaged six months later, on Christmas Eve in 2018. The couple began planning a 2020 wedding nearly immediately, settling on Las Vegas as an affordable destination wedding for about 60 guests.
Then, just days before their long-awaited date on April 4, the Chicopee couple’s plans were scuttled by the sinister new coronavirus sweeping the globe and paralyzing many aspects of daily life. Army Sgt. Jerrod Pass received a memo from the military barring domestic travel.
“We were kind of floored and devastated,” said Victoria Pass, née Covington, 25. “But then we thought: ‘You know what? They can stop the wedding, but they can’t stop the marriage.’”
And, a handful of generous wedding vendors — including a photographer, a videographer, a wedding planner, a manager at Blantyre, a posh venue in the Berkshires — agreed, volunteering goods, services and their time to salvage a memorable ceremony for the young couple on Friday, March 20.
It began with Dani Klein-Williams, of Northampton, owner of Dani Fine Photography and Image Studio. She answered a frantic Facebook message from the bride-to-be, who had resigned herself to a stripped-down ceremony at City Hall.
“I told her: ‘Give me two hours. I may be able to find you a better alternative,’” Klein-Williams said, quickly tapping into her wide network of wedding vendors, most of whom had also been hamstrung by the pandemic and related crowd control mandates.
Berkshire County florist Carolyn Valenti offered up hundreds of dollars in flowers that were headed for the trash as previously scheduled events were abruptly canceled. Wedding planner Tara Consolati stepped up, also serving as a last-minute baker and officiant, since she is ordained as a back-up for her clients in the event of an emergency.
“Tara stayed up very late to write a beautiful script for the ceremony, which we tried to make special for the couple even though none of us had ever met them before,” Klein-Williams said.
And, the setting — Blantyre, a luxury country manor in Lenox — provided an idyllic backdrop for their nuptials.
“It was closed for the season and very clean. They allowed us to use it as long as we promised to be safe and follow all the social distancing rules,” Klein-Williams added.
Lastly, Summer Wind Wedding Films provided video services and a live stream so the couple’s family and friends could watch their vows remotely. Driving north on Friday evening, Klein-Williams said the couple had no idea of the special touches the small business owners had in store for them.
Victoria Pass said the couple was floored a second time — in a good way — when they arrived at Blantyre.
“We had no expectations because it was so last-minute. We were expecting bare bones. But when we arrived, we couldn’t believe it — it looked like a castle. And, there were beautiful flowers in our originally planned colors. They took special time with the actual ceremony. It was all really beautiful,” she said.
She wore a white lace frock with a veil she salvaged from her bachelorette party; he wore a smart suit he had in his closet. The couple’s proper wedding attire remain shelved — for now.
“We went through a McDonald’s drive-through on the way home,” Jerrod Pass said with a laugh.
The couple’s DIY decorations and favors are still stashed in a closet, perhaps waiting for a larger celebration when the world returns to normal.
“We may come out with a huge party down the road; we’re not sure,” Victoria Pass said. “Right now, we’re just excited that we were able to get married against the odds.”
