Wedding Policy

Lea Joyner United Methodist Church
Wedding Policy

Rev. Larry O'Dell, Senior Pastor
Rev. Betty Swanson, Associate Pastor
Elaine Chapman, Program Director

The marriage ceremony in the church is a worship service. It is one of the most sacred rites that the pastor performs under the ordination and authority of the church. All marriages performed in the church shall be in accordance with the Social Principles of the United Methodist Church. The pastors and staff of Lea Joyner Memorial United Methodist Church want to assist you in any way possible to make your wedding a meaningful experience.

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A wedding can ONLY be scheduled (put on the church calendar) through one of the ministers at Lea Joyner United Methodist Church. A request for an officiating minister other than a minister at Lea Joyner United Methodist must be made in writing to the senior minister no later than six weeks prior to the wedding date in order to be considered for approval by the senior minister. One of the ministers on the staff of Lea Joyner Church must always be in charge of the Service of Christian Marriage, even when a visiting minister conducts the ritual.

The ministers of Lea Joyner require several sessions of premarital counseling with the bridal couple before the service of marriage. Therefore weddings should be scheduled at least 4 months in advance.

Weddings will not be scheduled on Sundays, Holy Week, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, or holiday weekends without prior approval from the senior pastor.

Weddings shall not begin later than 7:00p.m.

A sound technician from Lea Joyner UMC must be hired to run the sound board for the wedding. If you desire to have a power point presentation, a 2nd person must be hired for this.

HOLY COMMUNION

This must include the Service of Word and Table. Whenever Communion is served, the entire congregation should be included in the invitation to partake. The minister can go over the possibilities in detail.

PHOTOGRAPHS

We welcome the taking of pictures within limits that will not distract from the sacred service you want your wedding to be. There should be no photographs taken during the ceremony except by the "official photographer" designated by the couple. The photographer may take pictures of the wedding party as they enter the rear of the sanctuary. It is recommended that pictures taken following the ceremony be kept to a minimum so as not to keep the wedding party from the reception.

VIDEO CAMERAS

This should be arranged with the minister prior to the day of the wedding. Ideally, the video camera should be placed in a pre-arranged location unattended. However, an attendant will be allowed provided they are stationary. No flood lights should be used. Lighting levels can be negotiated prior to the wedding.

Lea Joyner Church offers a beautiful Bride's Room for the bridal party. Nothing of value should be left in the Bride's Room. Please see that all trash and personal items are removed after the ceremony.

FACILITIES

Sanctuary – seats 500 people
Great Room – can accommodate approximately 100 people, depending on set up
Gym – can accommodate well over 300 people, depending on set up.

REHEARSAL

The bride and groom will meet with the minister for premarital conferences. At that time the wedding service will be discussed and agreed upon. If you have a director not familiar with our facility, that person needs to visit and see the layout before the rehearsal. Make sure it is agreed upon in advance where the members of the wedding party will be placed. Deciding at the rehearsal can be very disruptive and be the cause of a long rehearsal.

All attendants, ushers, vocalists, instrumentalists and both sets of parents should be present at the wedding rehearsal. Please stress the importance of everyone being on time at the rehearsal and being on time. A rehearsal should never have to last over 45 minutes if it has been well planned ahead of time.

The vocalist or other musicians should have rehearsed with each other and with the sound technician before the rehearsal.

Be sure candelabra, the arch, kneeling bench, etc. are already in place by rehearsal time, so placing the wedding party can be done with ease.

The Marriage License should be given to the minister at the time of the wedding rehearsal. He or she will sign the license and see that it is recorded in the Lea Joyner Church records. The minister will mail the license to the Clerk of Court for recording. The original will be given to the bride and groom after the wedding.

A word of advice – Do not choose a flower girl or ring bearer that is younger than 4 1/2 years old.

All wedding rehearsals should be scheduled for the evening preceding the wedding, usually at 6:00p.m. The minister is in charge of the rehearsal according to the plans agreed upon with the bride and groom during consultation.

WEDDING DECORATIONS

All decorations should enhance, not detract, from the distinctive Christian symbols in the Sanctuary.

Decorating may begin the day before the wedding if there is nothing else scheduled.

The pulpit may be removed, but must be returned following the wedding. The altar table cannot be moved. Except for the cross, the objects on the altar can be moved, but need to be put back following the wedding, along with anything else that was removed. The monitors on the platform can be moved. The Minister of Music must be notified if the monitors are to be moved. He will arrange for them to be moved. The instruments cannot be moved, but can be pushed back toward the wall. If you do not want them seen, we recommend that folded walls be rented and put in front of the instruments and decorated accordingly. The plants on the platform may be used as part of the decoration. They can be rearranged if necessary.

The Liturgical color for weddings is white. We have white paraments that can be put on the altar. We will do this for you.

Flower girls may drop only silk flower petals on the Sanctuary floor.

Only non-drip candles can be used. However, clear plastic must be placed under any candelabra using wax candles.

Flowers and greenery are not to be attached to the woodwork with anything but ribbon or padded clamps made for this purpose. Tape, wire, tacks or other metal objects are not to be used.

Live floral arrangements from a Saturday wedding may be left for the Sunday worship services, and the church is appreciative of such. The church office should be advised, in advance, of such arrangements.

All decorations are to be removed immediately from the Sanctuary following the wedding, not after the reception. This is the responsibility of the wedding family and may be assigned to a florist, family member, or friend. Then the custodian can come on in and begin cleaning the Sanctuary. We ask that the reception be no more than 2 hours in length, so the custodian can get the facility cleaned.

RESPECT FOR THE CHURCH

Members of the wedding party and guests should conduct themselves with reverence and respect for the church and its furnishings. Smoking is not permitted in the church building, and no alcoholic beverages may be served or consumed on the premises.

FEES FOR NON-MEMBERS***

Wedding facility usage fees for up to 50 people invited:

Use of Sanctuary - $200
Use of Great Room for Reception - $100
Use of old sanctuary for reception - $100

Wedding facility usage fees for 50 people or more invited:

Sanctuary - $750
Great Room - $150
Old sanctuary - $200
Gym - $250

Custodial:

$100 for new sanctuary
$75 for Great Room
$100 for old sanctuary (set up for 5 tables or less) - $150 (set up for more than 5 tables)
$100 for Christian Life Center (set up for 5 tables or less) - $150 (set up for more than 5 tables)

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Church Organist - - $100
Lea Joyner Wedding Coordinator $100
Minister Honorarium - - Negotiate with Minister
Vocalist or Other Musician Negotiate with Individual
Sound Technician Negotiate with Technician (must be from Lea Joyner Church)
Power Point Technician Negotiate with Technician (must be from Lea Joyner Church)

*** Half of the fee is to be paid when the date has been set, the cost has been determined, and the checklist turned in. The balance will be paid 5 days prior to the date of the wedding. The Sound Technician, Church Organist, and Minister are to be paid at the rehearsal. The custodian’s fee can be given to the Wedding Coordinator which will be delivered to him.

CLEANUP RESPONSIBILITIES

Set up and restoration is always the responsibility of the wedding party. However, hiring of the custodian is mandatory. The program director can assist you with that. Custodial duties do not include dish washing. If the church’s silverware and dishes are used, for health sake, they are to be washed in the dishwasher. If you do not know how to use it, someone in the office will show you how. The wedding party must make arrangements for someone to be in the kitchen to wash them, plus putting everything back that was used. The custodian will take care of trash, vacuuming, mopping, sweeping and arrangement of furniture back as needed. The wedding party is responsible for the removal of all floral arrangements and "special" items used for the service and reception. If our tablecloths are used, they are to be washed by the wedding party and returned within 2 days, unless they are needed sooner. We ask that you throw bird seed instead of rice, and please wait until the couple is completely out of the building. Then the birds can help clean it up.

FEES FOR MEMBERS***

Church Organist - - $100
Lea Joyner Wedding Coordinator $100
Minister Honorarium - - Negotiate with Minister
Vocalist or Other Musician Negotiate with Individual
Sound Technician Negotiate with Technician (must be from Lea Joyner Church)
Power Point Technician Negotiate with Technician (must be from Lea Joyner Church)