new york skyline

Weddings of New York

weddingsofnewyork.com wedding couple
New York Wedding Officiants. Simple, meaningful civil marriage ceremonies in traditional, modern or multicultural styles. Your wedding, your way, at locations of your choice.

wedding ringWho are we?

Mary Beaty and Beth Lamont, are Civil Marriage Officiants, licensed by the Cityclerknyc.com, Bureau of Marriages, to perform weddings in New York City and in the State of New York. We specialize in romantic elopements, informal ceremonies, and family weddings, though we frequently officiate at large weddings. Our civil wedding services are similar to a Justice of the Peace or Judge, but we also offer the opportunity to design your ceremony to suit your own needs and wishes.

We have married (hundreds of) couples looking for a simple, unique, civil ceremony that is more personalized than a City Hall wedding. We will perform the ceremony at a location of your choosing, including your home or hotel, a garden, park, restaurant, or in a loft, event space or at the site of your reception - or even unusual venues such as the Brooklyn Bridge, City Hall Park, the top of Rockefeller Center, Central Park or Coney Island.

What kind of Marriage Ceremonies do you offer?

We provide traditional or modern civil marriage ceremonies, both formal and informal. Our goal is meaningful simplicity. The most important principle is to design a wedding which is meaningful and memorable to the wedding couple.

Brooklyn Bridge Park wedding ceremony
ny conservatory garden weddingWe provide sample ceremonies for you to choose, and follow your wishes in adapting ceremonies to your needs. Our ceremonies range  from a 'bare bones' elopement ceremony, to modern versions of marriage vows and blessings. Your wedding ceremony may be very traditional, including rings, music, readings, candle-lighting, or informal and completely original. We listen to your wishes, including family traditions, and can make suggestions to  include families and children in the ceremony. We offer contemporary and even historical marriage services, including a non-religious version of a historical Medieval wedding ceremony. You may write your own vows. You may also request additional ceremonies such as a Celtic Handfasting or other cultural wedding traditions such as a wine blessing, fire ceremony, seven steps, etc.
We have included some sample marriage ceremonies and readings as examples planned by other couples, and will be pleased to send you other examples to suit your needs.

Cultural Traditions

wedding ringThough our ceremonies are civil, not religious, we are respectful of cultural traditions. We often marry international couples and those from diverse backgrounds, and will design ceremonies incorporating cultural and symbolic references as requested. We have included Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Philipino, Spanish, German, Italian, Irish, Scottish, Celtic, Native American, East Indian, Lebanese, Pakistani, Iranian, Turkish, Albanian, Russian, Ukranian, Byelorussian, Danish, Dutch, French, Swiss, Swedish and many other cultural & linguistic elements, as well references to Quaker, Jewish, Catholic, Islamic, Mormon, Protestant, Unitarian, Neo-Pagan, Humanist, Buddhist, Shinto, Hindu, and other traditions.

We correspond with couples to discuss your ideas, wishes and plans, and then meet to design a personal ceremony that meets your needs.

New York Central Park weddingWe have experience in many venues in New York City, both public and private. We have conducted weddings in University Chapels, The Tillman Chapel for the United Nations, Riverside Church, The Brooklyn and New York Ethical Societies, Restaurants, Museums, Hotels, The Rainbow Room, Inns, Private Homes, Clubs, Lofts, Penthouses, Warehouses, Resorts, Central Park, Prospect Park, The Conservatory Garden, the New York and Brooklyn Botanical Gardens, Battery Park, Hudson River Park, Riverside Park, Madison Park (Flatiron),  Fort Tryon Park, City Hall Park, Coney Island, the Gowanus Canal, Red Hook Pier, on balconies, rooftops, boats -- on the Brooklyn Bridge and in Brooklyn Bridge Park (DUMBO), at the Fulton Ferry Landing, The Empire State Park, Tompkins Park, Chelsea Piers, and many other unique locations.

Enjoy our wedding blogs: ElopeNewYork, wedding2point0 , agreenbride, and ethicalceremonies
Useful articles can also be found at Wedding FAQs.

Clergy Certification

We are certified as clergy by the Humanist Society the national Ethical Society founded in 1939 by Progressive Quakers, and the American Humanist Association (AHA), the oldest and largest Humanist Association in the U.S. Mary and Beth are also the official representatives of the AHA at the United Nations, where we support Human Rights, Civil Rights, Ethical and Environmental issues, and we are members of the International Humanist and Ethical Union. Mary is also licensed in Canada by All Seasons Church to provide marriages and legal same sex weddings,

(Note: You do not need to be a Humanist member to be married by our services. We provide simple civil weddings for all couples. If you are interested, you may read more about the history of Humanism as a philosophy).