GREAT START
A loving, lasting marriage is more likely to result when a couple has strong relationship-building skills. It is particularly important that a couple acquires these skills early in marriage. To help you begin your life together, we provide GREAT START, a program designed to help you prepare realistically for marriage by building a skilled, happy, and growing relationship. GREAT START includes the Wedding Workshop and the Prepare Inventory.
WEDDING WORKSHOP
Every couple attends one Wedding Workshop, which are held on Saturday mornings every three to four months. The ministerial staff will answer your questions about music, facility usage and the wedding service itself. You will have the opportunity to meet your officiating minister, the GREAT START coordinator, the Wedding Coordinator and the Organist/Music Associate. Lunch and a tour of the worship facilities are included. All couples are expected to attend the Wedding Workshop. If that, however, is impossible, the couple will meet with their officiating minister three times to cover all the necessary material.
PREPARE
A major portion of the workshop will consist of interpreting your PREPARE Inventory results. PREPARE is a questionnaire designed to help you better understand yourself, your partner, and your relationship. The PREPARE Inventory is completed online prior to the Wedding Workshop.
TIME ALLOTMENT
A maximum of three hours is allotted for each wedding from the time the church is open by the Wedding Coordinator until cleanup begins. The church is opened 90 minutes ahead of the scheduled time of the wedding with our custodial staff commencing clean up 90 minutes scheduled start of the wedding. Florists, photographers, videographers, delivery persons, etc. should not arrive prior to that time.
MINISTERIAL CONFERENCES
One or more conferences must be arranged for the couple and the officiating minister. If you cannot attend the Wedding Workshop, you should make arrangements to have three meetings with the minister at the time of scheduling your wedding. Responsibility for scheduling these conferences rests with the couple. The minister cannot proceed with the wedding until these meetings are held. Call the church office 636.394.7506 to schedule your appointments.
ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES AND TOBBACCO
According to the rules of the United Methodist Discipline, there is to be no alcoholic beverages in the church or on church grounds. There is no smoking in the building.
MARRIAGE LICENSE
The marriage license should be applied for at the Recorder of Deeds Office, County Government Center, 41 South Central Avenue in Clayton [map] or at another county seat in Missouri. Application must be made at least three days before the license is issued and used in 30 days. Both parties must be present when the license is applied for. The marriage license should be brought to the church office the Monday before the weekend of your wedding.
QUESTIONS?
Please contact Jan Doyle if you have other questions regarding your wedding at Manchester UMC.
