WATCH: Lesbian couple marries on New York City street due to social distancing
Reilly Jennings and Amanda Wheeler tied the knot on the sidewalk as their friend officiated from a fourth-floor apartment
Providing a much needed boost during these dark times, a New York City lesbian couple has gone viral after sharing a video of their sidewalk wedding ceremony.
Reilly Jennings and Amanda Wheeler were meant to marry at New York City Marriage Bureau last week, but had to cancel after Mayor Bill de Blasio closed the bureau for the foreseeable future due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, CNN reports.
But their ceremony was saved when a friend, Matt Wilson, offered to officiate — albeit from the window of his Washington Heights apartment, due to social distancing.
“After a somber afternoon, one of our friends texted us on a group chat, letting us know he was ordained by the county clerk of New York and could do it,” Jennings told CNN.
“We texted, ‘Wanna marry us outside your window in the next 24hrs?’ and he said ‘YES!’ To that I replied, ‘How about in 90 minutes?’ We both finished up work meetings, got dressed, picked up some flowers, and headed to his apartment around the corner.”
Jennings shared footage of the ceremony on her Instagram, showing the women standing on the sidewalk as onlookers and passersby both on the street and in cars watched.
Wilson read from Gabriel García Márquez’s Love in the Time of Cholera, which Wheeler called “so incredibly perfect” on her Instagram, and the women exchanged vows and kissed as applause and cheers filled the streets.
“We got to share our love with more people than we ever could have imagined. And that’s the best part,” Jennings said.
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