I'm Getting Married in ... Harvard Yard?
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Although Memorial Church continues to hold services, Rev. Peter J. Gomes is missed at his weekly sermons. Gomes, who is slated to return for the Easter sermon, is currently recovering from a stroke.
Often considered the biggest day of your life, a wedding involves many choices: bridesmaid dress colors, guest lists, and very importantly, a venue. Members of the Harvard community have an option open only to current and former employees and students—Memorial Church.Aside from the church's aesthetic appeal, nostalgia for their alma mater calls many couples back to campus for their big day. "We have lots of couples who met at Harvard and for this reason feel they should be married there," Richard D. Campbell, sexton at Memorial Church, said.
The waiting list must be years long though, right? Wrong. Campbell said that the church, which hosts about 100 weddings per year, actually has "very little to no wait."
But surely the price tag is greater than the GNP of a small country? Wrong again. With the basic rental price of Appleton Chapel beginning at $400, the affordability is a draw for many couples, including Graduate School of Education alumna Maglen K. Epstein and current graduate student Louis K. Epstein, who were married there last week. "We were looking for somewhere local and convenient to where we were having our reception," Maglen Epstein said, "and the price was very affordable compared to other venues in the area."
Rates go up considerably after graduation, so if you're considering getting hitched, go ahead and do it now.