Subscribe to the Catholic Herald podcast on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher or Google Play Music.
Missing rings, a late priest, a
screaming flower girl — a million things can go wrong at a wedding. These
brides and grooms survived the unexpected and lived to tell the tale.
During times of stress, it’s best to
remember what’s important, said Vanessa Piccorossi, a parishioner of Our Lady,
Queen of Peace Church in Arlington. “Something will probably go wrong, but in
the end, you’ll be married to each other and that’s what matters,” she said.
“And if something goes wrong, you’ll have a great story.”
False alarm
As the couple said, “I do,” police shut down
the street outside the church and brought in bomb-sniffing dogs. Earlier, a
friend of the bride transported the bridesmaids’ purses from their hotel to the
wedding reception venue, also near the church, St. Peter on Capitol Hill. But
one purse fell off the cart onto the sidewalk. “Apparently some Capitol Police
found it and it looked suspicious to them, and they had to determine whether or
not it was a bomb,” said bride Anna Rose Gellert.
Once they realized the purse wasn’t a
bomb, they went through it and found the bridesmaid’s ID. Guessing it might belong
to someone at the wedding, the police entered St. Peter and discreetly
approached a guest who brought them to an usher. During Communion, the usher
slipped toward the front of the church and grabbed the bridesmaid. After
questioning her outside, they let her go back to the church before the wedding
was over.
“She came and went without me even
noticing,” said Gellert. “The whole thing is so funny to me. I get the idea of
a bomb isn’t funny but it happened so innocently.” She was grateful for the
professionalism of the police and that her usher kept a cool head. “It’s nice
to have good friends,” she said.
That’s what it’s all about
Vanessa Piccorossi
and her husband, Michael, were married at Blessed Sacrament Church in
Alexandria on what started at a sunny autumn day. Unbeknownst to the couple,
the weather was about to change.
After the ceremony, the celebration
continued at the parish hall. They ate Italian food, cut the cake and greeted
their guests. The couple’s first dance was “The Hokey Pokey,” and everyone
joined in. “We had a strong family and friend support network and we wanted to include
them in our first dance,” she said.
But after the band finished its first
set, the power went out. “A line of storms moved through the area, spawning
snow showers, wind gusts as high as 82 miles per hour, and thunder,” she said.
“We managed to continue the celebration, lighting all available candles. Our
young nieces and nephews held a very short-lived carrot cookout over the
flames.”
Once they realized the power wasn’t
coming back, the couple and guests headed home early. Her stepfather even had
to clean by candlelight.
“We look upon the storm that blew in
during our reception as a positive force. We recently celebrated our 23rd
anniversary,” Piccorossi said. “You can weather any storms as long as you are
honest with each other, open to listening and you know that hard times don't
last very long. In the end, you're stronger for it."