Marriages By Mari

Reverend Mari Presedo

Wedding Officiant

Reverend Mari H. Presedo

Every ceremony should be created especially to reflect each couples spiritual and religious

needs. You can write your own vows or choose from a variety of selections, which can be

tailored to you. You can add a unique wedding tradition from your culture. I can perform

personalized ceremonies on the beach, in a backyard garden, in your favorite restaurant, in a

park or at a country club. I can wear robes, formal attire or go casual. The choice is yours.

Interfaith , short notice and bilingual ceremonies available. Include your loved ones in a

memorable ceremony you and your friends will hold dear for a lifetime! Alternative and

commitment ceremonies welcome. I am registred in East Baton Rouge and Orleans Parishes in

Louisiana and Santa Clara County in California. Se habla Español.

Louisiana Marriage License Requirements

You must have a picture ID such as a Driver's license along with a certified copy of your

birth certificates. You should know and be able to provide your Social Security numbers. You

should know both your parents' full names, including your mother's maiden name and their

places of birth as well as your place of birth. Both of you need not be present to apply but the

applying party must present the above documents and information for both.

If you were previously married you must show how the marriage ended, for example

certified death certificate or certified divorce judgment. You must be 18 or older to obtain a

marriage license or over 16 with parental consent. Yes, both parents' signatures are required

unless they are divorced, then the parent who has legal custody must present a certified

copy of the judgment. There is a three day waiting period. Once issued, the license is valid

for 30 days. Cost varies,but it's generally around $25.00. Contact your individual Clerk of

Courts Office for more information.

Rates are based on location and size of ceremony

A complimentary consultation is offered so we can get to know each other and review sample

ceremonies, ranging from contemporary to spiritual to traditional.

A deposit will reserve your wedding day. Deposits are nonrefundable and can be paid by

cash or by cleared check. Once I have your deposit, I will reserve your date and time. On the

day of your wedding, the remainder of the payment will be due in cash.

Ceremony Rehearsal is optional and an additional charge - this includes going to the

wedding site or rehearsal site and doing a walk through of the actual ceremony with the

participants. Payment is due in cash at the rehearsal.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Q--Do you provide a marriage license?

A--No, I am not a notary. You will have to go to your county clerk's office. The license is generally good for 30 days. At the time of the wedding, we all sign it and I can mail it in for you if you choose. The license must be brought to the ceremony site for us to sign.

Q--What exactly does the fee include? Are there any other hidden fees?

A-The ceremony fee includes an initial complimentary consultation which I like to do in person as and many phone or e-mail consultations as needed. During the initial consultation, we will be asking questions so that we can get to know each other and for you to decide if my style and services are what you want and need. Your ceremony should be made as personal as possible, so it is important that you feel comfortable with me.

Q- Do you require a deposit?

A- Should you decide to retain my services for your ceremony, a deposit is due at that time so that a wedding date can be reserved. Deposits are nonrefundable and can be paid by cash or by cleared check. Once I have your deposit, your date and time are reserved. The remainder of the payment will be due in check one week before the wedding or cash the day of the wedding unless specified otherwise.

Q- What does the fee cover?

A-The fee includes performance of the agreed upon Ceremony on your wedding day. I can file your marriage license for you after the ceremony if you don't have time to do it yourself. The rehearsal fee includes me coming to your rehearsal to do a walk through of the actual ceremony and working out any possible problems or changes that may have to be made due to changes in the readers or member sof the wedding party due to illness, or travel plans gone awry.

Q- Are there travel fees?

A-There may be additional travel fees if your wedding is outside East Baton Rouge Parish.. Keep in mind though, the gas crunch has affected all of us and driving time means I am not able to work anywhere else. Depending on the location and circumstances they may be negotiable.

Q--Can we write our own vows? And is there an extra fee for this?

A-I encourage you to write your own vows. It is a wonderful touch to individualize your ceremony. I will be happy to assist you composing your own vows. There is no extra fee for writing your own vows.

Q--Can we change the ceremony if we want to? And is there an extra fee for this?

A-You can change the ceremony in any way you would like. Just like the writing of the vows, it is a way to add the couples individuality and beliefs to the ceremony. There is no extra fee.

Q--Can we include other people in the ceremony, in terms of readings, singing, etc.

A-This is a great way to include other people who weren't in the wedding party!

I encourage it heartily.

Q--If there are children from previous relationships involved, does the officiant have vows that include the children?

A-I have some wonderful ways to incorporate the children into the ceremony. If you would like to include the children, we can discuss different options to make them feel a part of the service.

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Suggested Wedding Day Scheduling

I hope that the following will help you schedule the details involved with your wedding ceremony and reception. These are only general guidelines. They are not meant to be carved in stone until your desires and visions for your day are incorporated. Your personal wedding may vary according to your preferences as you incorporate your religion, heritage and customs. Included are steps for incorporating kids from previous marriages and blended families.

The ushers seat guests as they arrive for the ceremony.

The mother of the bride is seated last, unless she accompanies her daughter to the altar.

The musicians or DJ play background music.

At the scheduled start time, unless the officiant, the groom, and the best man are in the processional, they take their places at the altar (or ceremony place).

The musicians start to play the processional music.

Procession - The most traditional order of the processional is ushers and bridesmaids in pairs, followed by the maid of honor, ring bearer, and flower girl. The bride enters last, escorted by her father or by both parents. These days it is popular for the mother of the groom to escort her son to the altar, thus beginning the procession.

The officiant greets the guests and may lead a brief opening prayer.

The officiant's message.

Special readings, songs and or music follow.

The vows - Bride and groom.

In re-marriage the vows - blending family -vows from parents to children.

The exchange of rings and the pronouncement "pronouncing you husband and wife".

Bride and groom kiss.

In re-marriage giving each child a piece of jewelry and the pronouncement "pronouncing you a new family".

Bride, groom and kids hug and kiss.

Unity candle ceremony (or any other marriage rite…in remarriage, include the kids).

The officiant then introduces the bride and groom as husband and wife.

In remarriage, the officiant then introduces the bride and groom and kids, preferably by names, as a new family.

Exit procession: bride and groom, followed by the adult attendants in pairs.

followed by the ringbearer and flower girl.

Take photos while the guests go to the reception.

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Favorite readings

Oath of Friendship -- Anon., China, 1st Century B.C.

I want to be your friend

For ever and ever without break or decay.

When the hills are all flat

And the rivers are all dry,

When it lightens and thunders in winter,

When it rains and snows in summer,

When Heaven and Earth mingle

Not 'til then will I part from you.

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What is Love? by Walter Rinder

Love is just not looking at each other and saying "You're wonderful".

There are times when we are anything but wonderful.

Love is looking out in the same direction.

It is linking our strength to pull a common load.

It is pushing together towards the far horizons, hand in hand.

Love is knowing that when our strength falters, we can borrow the strength of someone who cares.

Love is a strange awareness that our sorrows will be shared and made lighter by sharing;

that joys will be enriched and multiplied by the joy of another.

Love is knowing someone else cares that we are not alone in life.

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The Colour of My Love,

David Foster and Arthur Janov

I'll paint a sun to warm your heart

Knowing that we'll never part.

I'll draw the years all passing by

So much to learn, so much to try.

I'll paint my mood in a shadow blue,

Paint my soul to be with you.

I'll sketch your lips in shaded tones,

Draw your mouth to my own.

I'll trace a hand to wipe your tears

And trace a look to calm your fears.

A silhouette of dark and light

To hold each other oh so tight.

I'll paint the stars in the evening sky,

Draw the light into your eyes,

A touch of love, a touch of grace,

To softly fall on your moonlit face.

And with this ring our lives will start,

Let nothing keep our love apart.

I'll take your hand to hold in mine,

And be together through all time.

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I love you. I love you for what you are,

but I love you yet more for what you are going to be.

I love you not so much for your realities as for your ideals.

I pray for your desires, that they may be great,

rather than for your satisfactions,

which may be so hazardously little.

A satisfied flower is one whose petals are about to fall.

But the most beautiful rose is one,

hardly more than a bud,

wherein the pangs and ecstasies of desire are working for larger and finer growth.

Not always shall you be what you are now.

You are going forward toward something great.

I am on the way with you and . . I love you.

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Apache Marriage Blessing

Now you will feel no rain,

For each of you will be shelter to the other.

Now you will feel no cold,

For each of you will be warmth to the other.

Now there is no more loneliness,

For each of you will be companion to the other.

Now you are two bodies,

But there is only one life before you.

Go now to your dwelling place,

To enter into the days of your togetherness.

And may your days be good and long upon the earth.

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Excerpt from The Art Of Marriage

William A Petersen

A good marriage must be created

In the marriage, the little things are the big things

It is never being too old to hold hands

It is remembering to say "I love you" at least once each day,

It is never going to sleep angry.

It is having a mutual sense of values and objectives.

It is standing together and facing the world.

It is forming a circle of love that gathers in the whole family.

It is speaking words of appreciation and demonstrating gratitude in thoughtful ways.

It is having the capacity to forgive and forget.

It is giving each other an atmosphere in which each can grow.

It is a common search for the good and the beautiful,

It is not only marrying the right person

It is being the right partner

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Cherokee Wedding Prayer

please protect the ones we love.

We honor all you created as we pledge

our hearts and lives together.

We honor mother-earth

- and ask for our marriage to be abundant

and grow stronger through the seasons;

We honor fire and ask that our union be warm

and glowing with love in our hearts;

We honor wind and ask we sail though life

safe and calm as in our father's arms;

We honor water to clean and soothe our relationship

- that it may never thirsts for love;

With all the forces of the universe you created,

we pray for harmony and true happiness as we forever grow young together.

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My true love hath my heart, and I have his,

By just exchange one for another given:

I hold his dear, and mine he cannot miss,

There never was a better bargain driven:

My true love hath my heart, and I have his.

His heart in me keeps him and me in one,

My heart in him his thought and senses guides:

He loves my heart, for once it was his own,

I cherish his, because in me it bides:

My true love hath my heart, and I have his.

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Aztec Indian Wedding Poem

I know not whether thou has been absent: