A Little Good Luck and Rock & Roll for Derek and Sara
The Farrington Manor in East Brunswick, NJ, is known for its beautiful outdoor grounds and lake-front cocktail hours. They are not known however for their ability to guarantee perfect weather. As far as I know, no other venue has that super-power either.
What Ron and the staff of the Farrington did have was the perfect back-up plan, a ballroom adorned with floor to ceiling windows providing a gorgeous view of the scenery. Ron orchestrated a smooth ceremony to cocktails to reception transition utilizing the vast interior locations of his venue. All of the guests stayed dry, comfortable and enjoyed the entire celebration as if it was sunny and 80 degrees. Wherever you decide to book your wedding reception, it’s a good idea to inquire about your venue’s plan b.
Perhaps it was because he knew it meant good luck if it rains on your wedding day, but Derek was one of the calmest grooms I’d ever seen… or maybe it was because he knew he found his soulmate in Sara and that the absence of sunshine could never take that away. I did his brother Craig’s wedding five years ago and he was the same way with his wife, Jenny. Calm, cool and collected. After catching up with their parents, Paula and Bill, during the reception, I remembered where they get it from.
Sara and Derek are good friends with Keith Kenny, an uber-talented song writer and musician who just won Asbury Park’s Male Acoustical Act of the Year Award. Keith did a set after dinner that included a mix of Classic Rock and Blues covers with a few originals sprinkled in. The guests, especially Derek and Sara, loved it. From his first guitar riffs of Stevie Ray Vaughn’s, Pride & Joy, I knew Keith was going to take this wedding to the next level.
On a personal note, whoever said that “the pen is mightier than the sword” wasn’t kidding. The officient’s pen ran out of ink after the ceremony when they were about to sign the marriage documents so he came to me and asked if he could borrow mine. I knew what his intentions were so I was embarrassed that my good pen, the one I use for appointments and signing contracts, was at home. All I had was an old school black and white Bic to offer him. He laughed and said “that’ll do just fine.” So now this pen has been carefully placed in my “career memoirs” storage unit for safe keeping. Who knew that this unassuming pen would someday be used to officially seal the deal for two very special people… pretty cool, huh? I love my job.
