We keep updated COVID-19 policies on our contact page and we change them quite a bit, depending on what is happening in our county and Georgia. Generally speaking, until there is widespread vaccination, we are only doing outside ceremonies with strict social distancing for the officiant and/or photographer.

We also take very few ceremonies with guests more than the Governor’s Gathering number, which is the total of guests you can have without social distancing. 

If you need to reschedule due to COVID-19 affecting your date or your family, we will waive all rescheduling fees in our contract.

We have married over 280 couples since mid-March under these restrictions, and know that you can have an amazing experience, too.

We’re so glad to hear that!

Please contact us with your date, time, venue (if known) and package option, and we’ll go from there. Your date and time will be locked in once you provide a retainer and sign your contract.

Our General Manager, Jennifer, answers our initial inquiries to make sure everyone gets timely responses. You will likely work primarily with her through the booking process until you become our client.

We are a team of officiants who perform ceremonies and conduct Simple Signing Services so we likely have someone available for your event, even if it is not me personally. Partner Officiants write ceremonies Tracy prepares, and Tracy and Jennifer handle all client service until the script is delivered.

We are closed every year from the Wednesday before Thanksgiving through the Friday following, and a few days before Christmas through the 26th. We also close for the St. Patrick’s Day parade. 

Yay! Once you let us know that you’d like to move forward, Jennifer will send you a new client email with a link to an order form, contract, and invoice and it is due back to us within three days. We’ve made it an extremely simple process, so you can focus on more important things!

A 50% retainer is required to book your ceremony. The retainer authorizes us to turn down other clients for your date time and start work for you. You’ll pay online and we accept every major credit card. Your balance is due seven days before the ceremony, unless you are paying your balance in cash. We do not accept checks.

Because we turn away potential customers once we book you, and begin work immediately on preparations for your wedding, retainers are non-refundable if you cancel your package with us.

Our most popular dates and times are usually booked out at least six months in advance. For example, we usually begin turning away weddings for popular October dates in April. However, if you are flexible about the day of the week and time for an elopement, you can book us closer to your wedding date. We have booked plenty of Popup Elopement Packages with just a few days notice!

If you will need a permit for your event from the City of Savannah because of your group size (20 or more in your party, including you), they require at least 90 days notice.

We take bookings up to a year in advance, or further in the future if you already have a contract with a venue. If you are planning to rent a square or park for your wedding, the City of Savannah will only rent it out a year in advance.

We do, frequently! I do charge an additional travel fee for ceremonies that take place on Tybee Island, St. Simon’s Island, and Jekyll Island, or in Richmond Hill, Hinesville, Statesboro, and Hilton Head in South Carolina. Other locations in Chatham County do not require a travel fee. I will also travel out-of-state and to other locations in Georgia. Contact me for customized travel estimates.

If you would like us to attend a rehearsal to review the ceremony cues with your wedding party, the fee is $75. WQe can also run and coordinate the rehearsal for $125 if you are not working with a wedding planner. We can give you advice on whether we recommend a rehearsal for your event. The Create Your Story package includes a rehearsal.

If you are choosing to include any rituals in your ceremony, you will bring your own ritual kits and I give you advice on where to buy those, if needed.

I’m a business nerd so I love this question! If you do not work in the wedding industry, you may think that an officiant’s main job is to show up on a Saturday and read a ceremony for a few minutes. In reality, the performance part of the job is usually the least time intensive of all the work I do for my clients.

Most of my time on any project is spent writing your ceremony and preparing for your day, as well as answering questions leading up to your ceremony. If you read our reviews, you can see that we are there every step of the way and it is not unheard of to exchange 60 emails with a client before I actually meet them in person! Compared to other officiants, I also spend a fair amount of money on technology and staff to make the process easy and seamless for you. This is my full time job and it shows in the level of service we provide.

You can visit our elopement and intimate wedding packages page for more information on our Ceremony + Photography options. I also recommend reviewing our planning guide to help you decide which package would be best for your celebration.

Each of our Ceremony + Photography packages have specific guest limits and services included by design, based on our work with hundreds of couples and families, and knowing what it takes to have a successful event. If you are not interested in a bundled services package, you can always book us for your officiating needs with a Ceremony Only package and get custom quotes from photographers and other vendors.

I am an ordained Reverend through the Universal Life Church (ULC) The ULC certification is recognized in 40 states, including Georgia and South Carolina.

The Universal Life Church believes that all people are naturally endowed with the right to control their own spiritual life and so do I. As an officiant, my job is to facilitate a wedding that reflects your faith, not mine. It is also an inclusive organization that advocated tirelessly for marriage equality over the last decade and that makes me proud to be a member. 

The Universal Life Church credential allows me to work with couples of all spiritual and cultural backgrounds, including those who identify as atheists or prefer a secular lifestyle. In Georgia, unlike other states, a Justice of the Peace is a magistrate judge who deals with court matters and not someone who oversees legal marriages. That makes Universal Life Church Reverends essential for couples in our region who want to marry outside the traditional church structure.

What really qualifies me to be your wedding officiant is my experiences from marrying 2,000+ couples, as well as those I gathered before I married the first one. I am focused on your needs as a couple. As a writer, I have tons of resources to pull from to reflect your desires in your ceremony, whether they are spiritual or modern in nature. As a trained coach, I can help you make decisions about your wedding and help you with any anxiety you may have leading up to your big day.

That is a great question! I wrote a blog post that explains how we work with our clients, including communicating with them, and when I do specific types of tasks in the preparation timeline, like check in with you or write your ceremony.

Each client receives a link to a personal Document Center to keep track of invoice due dates, questionnaires and event details, too.

We perform ceremonies (almost) everywhere! The location is your choice. With the exception of the Tracy’s Choice package (50 or fewer guests), there is no limit on guests for your ceremony unless you are purchasing a Ceremony + Photography package. Limits on guests for Ceremony Only packages are only constrained by the location or venue you choose. Clients are responsible for choosing their location and securing permits if required.

I have galleries that serve as guides to squares, parks, and other wedding and elopement locations in Savannah.

Because of crowds, we do not officiate weekend elopements in Whitefield Square or at the Forsyth Park fountain. However, we are happy to grab some photos of just you in one of those locations as part of one of our newlywed walks or pedicab adventures with the Savannah Elopement Experience or Intimate Destination Wedding.

If you are planning a large wedding (more than 30-50 guests) and need planning assistance, I am happy to refer you to my favorite wedding planners and vendors.

One of my favorite parts of being a wedding officiant- especially in a town that services couples from all of the world- is that I work with a very diverse group of couples who come from all sorts of cultural backgrounds. About 50% of couples choose a custom ceremony package, which could include personal touches, rituals, or special vows, and about 50% choose my Tracy’s Choice package which includes a pre-written ceremony from my personal library that I choose for your day.

To prepare your ceremony, I’ll take inspiration from an extensive questionnaire about your ceremony preferences, as well as notes taken during an in-person consultation if one is included in your package.

About 50% of my couples request a spiritual ceremony that mentions God in some way, and about 50% request a non-religious ceremony. I believe in modern marriage and my ceremony content reflects that by focusing on themes like romance, adventure, friendship and teamwork. I also love including pop-culture and literature references if they resonate with the couple. My Harry Potter inspired ceremony is the most visited page on my entire website!

All my clients have access to a password protected Client Portal with ceremony planning tips, including exclusive tips on preparing personal vows and choosing rituals and readings, collected from my experience.

I work with couples of all faiths, whether they identify as Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, Pagan, Humanist, an atheist, or something else. If you would like to include your spiritual beliefs in your wedding ceremony, I am happy to create a ceremony that calls in and includes God, or whoever you believe in. That could include an opening prayer, a closing blessing or simply mentioning that we are in God’s presence.

While I shy away from complete, standard ceremonies that come from specific religions, I am also happy to include biblical quotes that you identify, and weave them into the ceremony text. However, I do not write custom religious content for my ceremonies and do ask that any religious content provided to me is inclusive and optimistic in tone. I do not replicate ceremonies you might hear in a church since you are not choosing to get married in a church.


As for content I will not include, I stay away from messages that encourage the submission of a wife to her husband, including rituals and biblical quotes that emphasize that dynamic. I will also not use words like “obey” in a ceremony.

Great question. The Tracy’s Choice package is simply the way it is described- I choose the ceremony. Every season, I prepare 1-2 pre-written scripts and I offer a package at a lower cost with these scripts because they take less preparation time. They will be like the samples on my Ceremony Example page, but not those exact ceremonies. You will get a final copy (no changes) of what we will say via email before your ceremony and if you’d like, you can include personal vows. I’ll send a questionnaire and you’ll let me know that, as well as your basic spiritual preferences.

If you would like to add a ritual (like a sand ceremony or handfasting), a reading, or make some edits, you can upgrade to our Choose Your Own Adventure package. If you are looking for something more custom or a very personalized experience, the Create Your Story package is the way to go. 

Finally, we limit this package to small events with 50 or fewer guests. 

In 2019, I (Tracy) officiated half of all of our 417 engagements based on my own goals for work and life balance, as well as when most events take place. Very often, we receive requests for different weddings that are happening at the same time (i.e., Saturday at 5PM) and it is not unheard for all of us to be working on a popular weekend!

In 2020, the business parts of what we do demanded more of my attention, including making sure we are delivering great client experiences, filling our schedule, managing changes in a pandemic, and expanding to new markets. For 2021, I have taken a new role in Savannah Custom Weddings & Elopements as Experience Creator which means I will personally officiate fewer weddings this year.

The most important thing to focus on is that all of our Partner Officiants are awesome! When you are booked with a Partner Officiant, I still prepare all the scripts with the clients and Jennifer and I provide account management leading up to the day.

I am an advocate for marriage equality and I am excited to help honor your commitment or that of your friends. When same-sex marriage became legal in Georgia in 2015, I threw a celebration in Forsyth Park that was covered by the local media and even appeared on the national edition of NPR’s All Things Considered!

I also believe Black Lives Matter.

We also love doing vow renewals and commitment ceremonies! I’d be very happy to help you create a ceremony that reflects your relationship. All of our packages can be applied to a vow renewal or commitment ceremony. If you were legally married before your ceremony, that is okay too, even if no one knows except us.

As long as the location allows dogs, absolutely! We love dogs. Here is a photo of my dog. 

Absolutely! Let us know which packages you are considering when you send in your inquiry and we can definitely give you guidance. I would ask myself these questions, also, and give us your answers, which can help us provide suggestions.

• How important is the ceremony content to me? Do I have personal touches that I want to contribute?
• How personal of a touch do I want from my officiant? Is it important that I meet with her- and when and how often- in the process?
• If I am planning a destination wedding in Savannah, how much time do I personally have to spend on planning the ceremony?

In Georgia, you must obtain a valid marriage license on your own prior to the ceremony from the probate court. Due to COVID-19, the Chatham County probate court is requiring couples to apply online and make an appointment. This process can take awhile and we encourage you to do this at least 30 days in advance.

You will need color photos of your government ID. If you have been married before, you will also need a certified copy of your divorce decree.

After the ceremony, we will sign your marriage license. In Georgia, only the officiant signs the marriage license and there are no witnesses required.

If you are a permanent resident of the state you can use a marriage license from another county in Georgia. Please check with them about any different procedures due to COVID-19.

Due to COVID-19 procedures, we will return the marriage license back to you after the ceremony for you to file on your own via mail. You will get your certified copy on 3-6 weeks.

Yes! I have married many international couples, including those who have visited Savannah from Canada, Mexico, Sweden, the UK, China, Nigeria, and Australia, among others. You will need the same documents to apply for a marriage license- a government ID and a certified copy of your divorce decree, if you have been married before.

If you are in a country governed by the Apostille Convention, you will need to take an extra step to have your marriage certificate notarized and receive an Apostille certificate, which is usually easy.