Custom, Warm, & Professional Wedding Officiant

How do you want your wedding to feel? Let's work together to design a ceremony that will mean the most to you - one that reflects your feelings for each other, includes your desired traditions, and provides your family and friends a sense of your unique relationship.

I am an ordained officiant who is open to all. I am also an award-winning officiant, some of which are as follows:

- Best of the Knot 2011
- Bride's Choice 2010 and 2011 on WeddingWire
- Best of OneWed 2009 and 2010

I have rave reviews on various wedding websites, including WeddingWire, Yelp!, and The Knot. However, what that means to you is that I will work with you both to create a ceremony that fits you and your relationship perfectly, one that also sets the tone for the entire celebration, and will be delivered warmly, professionally, and with the caring it deserves.

I am looking forward to being a part of your relationship!

This listing asks for an hourly rate, which, of course, I don't have; I charge $550 for a custom ceremony and the entire process and not an hourly rate.
Moreover, I am happy to travel to wherever your wedding is! Travel charges only come in after 30 miles.

Reviews

• 5/5 stars May 25, 2012

  

  I didn’t realize how important a wedding officiant is to the getting married process until we started working with Bethel. From the minute we met her, I completely fell in love. Her energy is so positive, she’s so much fun, and she clearly really knows what she’s doing. After our initial meeting with her, I asked my fiance, “Can we have her? Can we? Please??” Bethel is so great to work with…she communicates clearly and is very reliable and easy to get in touch with. I never once felt like she had forgotten about us in the five months we worked with her leading up to our wedding.
  
  Bethel is extremely well organized, and has her pre-wedding process down to a science. The “homework” that she gave us was really thought-provoking and interesting to do, and it gave her great material to use in our ceremony. She also has so many ideas for things to include in a ceremony, both religious and not. We included an honoring-of-our-parents piece that she suggested, which both sets of parents absolutely loved. She shared so many resources with us, for our vows, for the exchanging of the rings…things that were absolutely invaluable to us and made it so much easier to come up with the perfect words!
  
  Bethel is the perfect combination of professionalism and fun. She so clearly loves what she does, and it comes through in the end result. We had so many people come up to us after our ceremony and tell us that it was by far the best ceremony they had ever been to. It was so personalized, and so very US. Almost a year later, I still can’t stop gushing about Bethel and how she MADE our wedding. She’s still a part of our lives to this day, and we both just love her so much. She’s an amazing person and you’d be hard-pressed to find a better wedding officiant.

  – Iris

• February 26, 2012

  

  What a picture-perfect day!
  Weather – Sunny and Warm on this perfect So. Cal. day!
  Location – Sand between our toes…what more could you ask for!
  MOB & MOG – Calm…WHAT! Yes, calm…both are enjoying the day!
  Bride & Groom – Relaxed! Thanks to Bethel for making this journey so easy. From the first discussion all the way through to the ceremony…she was wonderful. She is so organized, we didn’t have to do any research, she sent everything we needed to either write our own vows or use her suggestions. We had homework assignments that were fun and made us really think about what we wanted. She made the ceremony unique and special….Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!
  

  – Emily

• February 12, 2012

  

  It is rare in life to come across someone who has found their calling in life. It was immediately apparent us that we had come across one of those people after meeting Bethel and we had the extreme pleasure and fortune to have Bethel as our officiant. Because it is my husband and I's first time getting married, not only did we not know what to expect but the actual ceremony was not really something we had put a lot of thought into. After we met with Bethel, I can honestly say that the ceremony became one of the top two things we were looking forward to!
  
  On top of giving us amazing suggestions (most of which we used), Bethel helped us to really create a ceremony that was beautiful and meaningful to us. We used a lot of sentimental and traditional things that made our ceremony very unique. Bethel told us it is her goal to have the all of the guests engaged when she does a ceremony and I can honestly say that every single person at our wedding told me how amazing the whole thing was and how they had never been to such a great wedding ceremony. It was so much better and more meaningful than I could have ever dreamed of! My favorite memories of our wedding are parts of the ceremony. Our wonderful day could not have been what it was without Bethel.
  
  I would (and have) recommend Bethel to any and everyone I know. To say that having Bethel as our officiant is an honor is an understatement. We love her and are so incredibly thankful a little divine intervention brought her into our lives.
  
  Janell and Matt
  
  

  – Janell

• February 7, 2012

  

  I would just like to say that Bethel is AMAZING! Never did I think that an officiator could really capture the essence of our relationship in a ceremony the way that Bethel did. She took the time to get to know us and our relationship, and I really do feel like that made all the difference in the world. By the time we got to the actual ceremony, it felt like we had a life-long friend standing before us, walking us through our commitment to each other. It was so wonderful and so beautiful, and I really do feel like that can all be attributed to Bethel and the way she works. Our day was beyond special, and we are both so grateful to have someone who could make it personal, make it reflective of our lives and our love for each other, and give us the most beautiful memories to have forever. I cannot speak enough to how wonderful it was to work with Bethel. In all honesty, it wasn’t work it all. It was fun! Bethel is so genuine and caring, and I am so grateful we were able to share it all with her. We recommend Bethel to the highest degree and can both truthfully say that our wedding was that much better because she was a part of it!

  – Laura

• January 27, 2012

  

  Bethel is nothing short of AMAZING. She is warm, kind, compassionate, considerate, friendly and professional. These qualities, coupled with her wedding experience, make her a wonderful officiant. My husband and I knew we wanted a non-denominational ceremony, and had general thoughts on certain words and pieces we wanted to include, but had NO idea where to start. We were feeling very overwhelmed about writing the ceremony (it felt like the hardest part)! Once we found Bethel we immediately felt at ease. We loved the way she made a big effort to get to know us as a couple. It was great skyping with her, and her "homework" questions about our relationship were fun and meaningful to answer. It gave us a chance to really reflect on what we both wanted the ceremony (and our marriage) to stand for. We would recommend Bethel to anyone. She really gets the positive energy flowing on your special day!

  – Tanya

• January 16, 2012

  

  Bethel was an outstanding officiant for our wedding. She is friendly, outgoing and thoughtful, and we knew she would do a great job. Her suggestions made the ceremony planning much easier than we anticipated. She incorporated wonderful personal touches as well, from saying a greeting in Japanese for our guests from Japan (her Japanese is excellent) to incorporating our personal stories and reflections. We loved the ceremony, as did our guests - we heard from so many of them about how much they loved Bethel’s ceremony. We couldn’t have been happier. We highly recommend Bethel!

  – Aiko And Dev

• November 3, 2011

  

  Ceremonies by Bethel is hands down the best way to create an intimate, interesting and romantic ceremony for your wedding. We selected Bethel from dozens of other officiates and found her the most unique. We desired to have our ceremony bring out the personality of our relationship and Bethel delivered this to us beautifully. We would recommend Bethel to those who are seeking a ceremony less focused on faith and more focused on the love the attracted you and your partner to one another. Thank you Bethel for all your great work in creating custom fit ceremony that exceeded all our expectations.

  – Melissa Josh

• October 3, 2011

  

  Bethel was amazing. We saw her perform a friend's wedding and decided on the spot that she was the right officiant for our upcoming wedding. She was so wonderful and fit right in with the playful, intimate, and personable nature we wanted for our ceremony. She walked us through the process, exactly what would be said, and was so organized and responsive, it was a gift during such a busy time. The ceremony was beautiful, and we couldn't have asked for it to go any better than it did. Simply amazing. :)
  Thanks, Bethel!

  – Jenn

• September 13, 2011

  

  Looking back on the wedding day and wedding preparation there is not one thing that I would change. For us it was truly a magical day. It was such a pleasure getting to know Bethel. Her energy is very calming and warm. She is spectacular at details and following through with exactly what you she says she are going to do. As well as go above and beyond to make sure it was unique and special just for us.
  As I stood up there I have never felt more proud. Bethel was able to guide the ceremony flawlessly while emphasizing our love and making the guests feel like they were a part of our moment as well. A few of our friends even commented that they felt that they could relate to the readings/ poems. Overall great general rules to live by: “Treat the ones you love the very Best!” I think everyone headed to the reception holding their partners hand a little tighter 
  Dave’s cousin, Paxton (who played the guitar at the beginning) even proposed to his girlfriend after our ceremony. (He didn’t share that info till the next day). So Love was in there air.
  Thank you, again Bethel, for our wedding “homework”. It was really nice to have a guideline to follow and time goes by way too quickly so thanks for helping us to work on it. She even mailed us a printed out copy of our vows…wonderful keepsake.
  And for helping with the name changing process!! Just started to do that one, and wow that is a task!
  Good luck to future matrimonial celebrations!! We will definitely recommend YOU!!
  

  – Holly

• August 23, 2011

  

  Where do I begin? Bethel was referred to us by our photographer and the minute we sat down with her, I knew she was the one! She is extremely organized, direct, great communicator and pretty darn funny. After we hired her, she immediately sent over 20+++++ pages of ideas, information and and outline of the ceremony. It took the stress out of planning and made our "homework" so much fun. Our ceremony was perfect, actually more than I could have expected. Bethel delivered a witty, unique, sentimental and personal service and all our family and friends complimented us on our choice for a officiant. She is hands down the best of the best, one in a million and great at what she does!

  – Anni

• August 21, 2011

  

  We hired Bethel to be our officiant for our wedding in July. From our first meeting with Bethel (over Skype because we had moved out of state) Bethel blew our mind and we knew that our wedding was going to be perfect because of her. Bethel was so much more than a vendor to us, she made us feel like we were to become a special part of her life, and she definitely became a special part of our lives. She had so many personal and creative ideas, and they made our ceremony truly memorable. She helped us, throughout the year, stay focused on why we were getting married, and helped remind us that the wedding is about our union, not about all the silly little details that go into wedding planning.
  
  Bethel worked so hard with us to create the perfect ceremony, and it truly was perfect. The ceremony was personal, touching, funny and so exactly fit us and what we wanted out of our ceremony. People are still coming to us and telling us that it was the most memorable wedding ceremony they had ever been to. She made each of our guests feel like they were a part of the day, which was so special. She had everyone crying and laughing - she truly has a gift and any couple would be lucky to have her as part of their lives!!
  

  – Ricara

• July 21, 2011

  

  Bethel did such an amazing job as our wedding officiant. At our first meeting, we clicked with her immediately and booked her without wanting to meet any other officiants – we knew she was the best fit for us. She has great energy and was very invested in creating a wedding ceremony that fit us and our relationship. Bethel offered a lot of resources and ideas to help us design our ceremony, but also was open to any requests we had to customize it. Our wedding had the exact tone we were hoping for. We received so many compliments on our wedding ceremony from family and friends, all commenting on how personal and meaningful the ceremony was. We’re so happy she married us.

  – Christina

• July 14, 2011

  

  We met Bethel at a wedding show in downtown San Diego and we got a fantastic impression! She is very outgoing, sweet, and loving! We did not book her right away because we were keeping our dates open for the reception site. By the time we figured out our date we were worried that she would be booked up. We were reading reviews online...and as I'm sure you have seen they are all amazing...my husband actually made me stop reading them. He said, "Don't keep reading those until we know we can get her. I don't want to hear how amazing she is and then end up disappointed if we don't get her!" Lucky for us we did get her! Bethel is married her self and has a policy of not going to receptions, after her day of marrying she goes home to have dinner with her husband...that alone says a lot of her character! She is very open to idea's and supplies you with tons of idea's to personalize and make the ceremony your own. She also has you fill out information about each other (it stays secret until the wedding day) which she uses to personalize and tell stories at the wedding ceremony. She puts so much time and effort into making each wedding unique and special. All our guests loved her and we have been blessed to have her in our lives and as a special key to our special day!

  – Amandajeff

• June 21, 2011

  

  Never would we have imagined that my small, simple wedding would have been so stressful in the beginning, and after choosing Bethel as our Officiant, we also wouldn't have imaged it being so simple and enjoyable. She was so organized and professional at all times, yet passionate and caring. It's rare that you come across professionals who actually "care", so having her be a part of the ceremony was a blessing to us. She speaks with passion, and her smile and eyes are warm and loving, making it so easy to talk to her. We NEVER once felt like we weren't in control, or that anything was going to go wrong. She was VERY good at keeping us updated in the ceremony's progress, and the "homework assignments" were so much fun (for both of us). Ultimately, she helped us make our wedding just the way we've always dreamed it to be, and for that, we are FOR EVER thankful."
  
  -The Dimanches (Bride and Groom)
  

  – Linda

• March 30, 2011

  

  I enthusiastically recommend Bethel for your wedding officiant. She was wonderful from start to finish. She worked with us to make the day exactly what we wanted it to be, provided us with lots of options, and was caring and supportive throughout. You will NOT be disappointed.

  – Samantha

• February 23, 2011

  

  Bethel assisted my husband and I eloping this February. She made our ceremony so special and sweet that we both were in tears. Our wedding ceremony was all about us and who we are as a couple which is what a wedding should be. She even sent us a sweet card and care package with a follow up email after the wedding with everything we needed. I don't think our wedding could have gone any better thanks to her. :)
  
  Wayne & Sara Mackenzie
  2-7-11

  – Sara

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