Some Delirious Notes on The Pop Up Chapel
So on Saturday, 24 couples who couldn’t get married before this week did so in Central Park, in 24 customized ceremonies, surrounded by friends and family, for free. It was amazing and beautiful and heartwarming and more perfect than anyone dreamed it could be. In the five weeks since Bex, Josh, and Jen had the idea for this project over wine the night the gay marriage bill passed, it went from “neat idea” to “historic event” (Mayor Bloomberg’s phrase!), with the help of hundreds of people who heard about it and said “How can I help?”
I don’t think what happened Saturday has really sunk in yet. But last night as I was taking a cab home at 2 am with the window down, high as a kite on endorphins, oxytocin, dopamine, and whatever neurotransmitter floods your brain when you see fairness and justice finally happen (and there has to be one for that!), I typed some notes into my phone so I wouldn’t forget. So here are the notes, even though I’m still delirious!:
- Awesome moment: my friend Brian who volunteered at the event overheard a bystander mom telling her children “Kids, pay attention. This is history we’re watching right now.” This is my favorite bystander story (oh for a slideshow of “crying bystanders who were just walking through the park and saw these weddings!”), though there are hundreds.
- In the middle of a crowded city and bustling park, the (officially cordoned off) footprint of the event was magically calm and peaceful. Each of the 24 ceremonies was a real wedding, with a hushed and solemn focus on brides and brides and grooms and grooms. Guests cried in their seats, watching the faces of their sons and daughters, sisters, brothers, and friends. Volunteers and staff cried from our spots near the fountain. Journalists cried into their notebooks. Everybody cries at weddings, but there was something different about these, obviously. Though the Pop Up Chapel was not a political event (and we took great pains to make sure of that), there was no way to avoid being bowled over by the symbolism. At the end of each ceremony, as the newlyweds were announced, the crowd outside erupted in applause. It was fucking awesome!
- My phone-note about our MC, Dave Holmes, is “Dave Holmes AMAZING HUMAN BEING.” It’s true. Dave flew to New York to do this and he could not have been more perfect. He also might be the one volunteer/staff member who never mentioned the heat during the brutal 4-5pm hour, even though he was the most dressed up of all of us. Also, he’s amazing. I love him. What a class act.
- Though our 24 couples weren’t chosen - it was first-come, first served - each brought their own style to their weddings. Nothing was generic or repeated. I was just really impressed by that chance detail!
- On a purely selfish note, I learned so much from the five weeks of helping plan this project! It was a crash course for all of us. My biggest takeaway was that people actually want to help out with really awesome ideas, especially when they’re presented with the enthusiasm of the two leaders of this project, Bex Schwartz and Josh French. Basically everyone who heard this idea said “How do I get involved?” This goes for volunteers, sponsors, city parks employees, and big companies. I also learned that a small group of people can get a lot done in a short amount of time. And that it’s okay to ask for things! People often really want to be asked. I’ve never been able to do that, but every time I took a deep breath and asked, the answer was yes! (It helps that this idea was just indisputably wonderful.)
- My head is still spinning, but I wanted to get this down before going back to regular life tomorrow. I want to call out all of the volunteers and sponsors who came on board (especially The Knot, Just About Married, Liz Holden, and Dave Holmes), but especially the dedicated original Pop Up Chapel team: Bex Schwartz and Josh French (the two CEOS of the Pop Up Chapel, who deserve the most credit and who, together, can make ANYTHING happen. I am in awe) and the rest of the team, without each of whom this amazing project couldn’t have happened: Jen Carlson, Kerry McGovern, Kelly Reeves, Tyler Coates, Dave Cole, Tara Ariano, Kelly McGilvery, and Jessica Fantz. And last-minute but totally crucial volunteer Bobby Finger. (Picnic Club Forever, you guys!)
There are so many other people to thank (Mike Doughty! 70 volunteers! The Mayor’s office! To name just a few.)
And finally, thank you of course to our couples, for trusting us with one of the most important days of your lives: especially the ladies whose two little kids walked their moms down the aisle, and John and Jay who’ve been together for 37 years and are now finally, in their words, “legit,” the two that got me the most (though you all made us cry.) To all of our couples: your wedding day was one of the best days of hundreds of stranger’s lives! Thank you for letting all of us share in your joy.
As Bex said in an impromptu speech: “This is the greatest thing that’s ever happened in the history of the world.” It was really, really close to that. Yay times a million.
Recent comments