ceremonies with four to six people in her front room. But she also performs customized ceremonies for couples in a variety of places including parks, beaches, barns, museums, country settings, the Saratoga racetrack, private estates and hotel banquet rooms. She has built her business from 10 weddings the first year to over 80 weddings last year. “I spend about 20 hours creating each one of my ceremonies,” she says, depending on what a couple wants. “If the ceremony is just something to do to get to the party afterwards and just something to get through, then who I am to judge,” she says. “But if they think the ceremony is the most important part of the day, I can help them with that.” Burke suggests couples ask questions of potential officiants to see if they fit with their vision. Some of her suggestions include: Is this your fulltime job? “It’s not easy to have this as your fulltime job. But my couples can reach me, and I can call them back within a few hours. Weddings are first and foremost with me,” she says. What qualities do you bring to my wedding? “Just because your Uncle Joe got ordained, doesn’t mean he has the experience to stand in front of 150 guests and speak personally about you,” she says. What do you do with a screaming child? “You have to be more than being a great storyteller at a wedding. If the ringbearer or another child in the audience has a meltdown, it is your job to deal with it so it doesn’t interrupt the ceremony,” she says.
REV. JOY BURKE at a ring blessing ceremony. — Photo by Scott Kretschmann
Amanda Boehmer of Saratoga Springs was married by Burke last fall by the reflecting pools at the Hall of Springs in Saratoga Springs. “I was looking through the Internet trying to find someone to marry us. I figured I could find an officiant online. My husband and I found each other online,” Boehmer says. “We wanted a non-denominational officiant who had a good reputation. We didn’t want a justice of the peace. We wanted a real meaningful ceremony.” Boehmer calls Burke the “Cadillac of officiants.” “She was so fluent in so many readings and so well versed in so many types of religion, history, literatures, and more. She put together something so comprehensive and so personal for us,” she says. “We wanted to incorporate a mix of elements. She did that, and our guests are still talking about it.” The couple was able to add a lot of song lyrics into the ceremony. The bridesmaids sang and played the piano to “Lean on Me.” The groomsmen all read passages. Boehmer wanted to incorporate her
dad into the event, too, even though he had died 10 months before the wedding. A song titled “What Would Love Do,” by Jason Mraz was played in the middle of the ceremony. “Everyone paused as it played,” she says. “It was exactly what I wanted.” If a quick, casual and inexpensive ceremony is what you’re looking for, the Albany County Courthouse is a good bet. It costs $40 for the marriage license, and the ceremony in the courts is free. “I’ve seen them come in blue jeans and T-shirts to the full gown and tuxes,” says Alexis Gomes-Evans, account clerk at the courthouse. She says that couples can make an appointment to get married by a judge in either the criminal court on Saturday and Sunday mornings, or they can be the one and only couple married early in the morning each weekday in the Albany City Hall. “Those appointments are booked for months in advance,” GomesEvans says. “They come in at 8:45 a.m., and it is performed at 9 a.m. in the judge’s chamber.” timesunion.com/VOW 29