My Dear Couple,

Welcome and thank you for visiting my website.

Your wedding is certainly high on my list of °Most Important Days of my Life.” The officiant that you choose will play a much more important role on your wedding day than you realize. After all. without the ceremony, there is no marriage to celebrate.

It is my humble belief that before God, we are all the same. We are His daughters and His sons. The many other labels we choose to wear are for us, not for Him. He cares not whether we are Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, Hindu, Jew, or anything else. It matters not to Him if we are active in the practice of faith, or not (though active is better.)  What matters it that we live our lives as good people, trying our best to love God and to love each other.

He made us, knows us, as we really are, and continues to form us and love us as He finds us now. He remains faithful to us no matter what we choose to do. He's not done with us yet!

If you honor me by choosing me as your officiant, my role is to represent the state by making your marriage legal and secondly to bring God's blessing to your new life together. What religion you are. or are not, does not concern me. We are all welcome before God.

My personal goal in life Is to follow Jesus. Like Him, I strive never to judge others, but to accept them as they are and for whom they are. I am here to witness your love for each other and to assure you of God's love for each other and to assure you of God’s love for you.

I also try to personalize your wedding by including your families, your friends, your loved ones in heaven. We are who we are and He made me warm, fuzzy and romantic, sorry!  My homily (short talk) will always be heartfelt and sincere. Your ceremony will be the perfect length of 17-20 minutes. I will bring spirituality, but not religion. I will bring humor and warmth with simple words that I hope you will long remember. My goal Is to help you create memories that will last a lifetime.

Thank you for requesting me to officiate at your wedding ceremony. I am a validly ordained Roman Catholic Priest. Due to my decision to marry and my request for a dispensation from my vow of celibacy, I am not authorized to administer the sacraments on behalf of the Church. Your wedding will be a spiritual ceremony (unless you specify otherwise) and will be performed in accordance with the laws of the state. It will be recognized as legal and binding by civil authorities, but it will not be recognized as " sacramental" by the Roman Catholic Church. If you wish, you may seek to have your marriage convalidated by the Church at a later date. I am happy to perform ceremonies with officiants of other faiths. This is YOUR wedding. You are encouraged to personalize the ceremony as you wish e.g. although readings are not necessary, you may choose any secular or religious reading; you may have a family member or friend participate, or have a Unity Candle or a Sand Ceremony. I strongly urge you NOT to have me present at your rehearsal since there is an additional charge for my time. In my experience, it is the bride's decision as to how she wishes the wedding procession to take place.

The wedding Coordinator at the venue will assist you with suggestions, this is what she does. I will guide you through the ceremony itself. Regarding my fee, I do not require a deposit before the wedding. However, I strongly implore you to have the fee available (in cash or check) in the possession of the Best Man or anyone delegated by you. It is also very important that your marriage license be PRE-SIGNED by two witnesses on lines 24 and 25 BEFORE the ceremony. This should also be in the possession of the Best Man. Please have the Best Man bring the three items, the signed license, the return envelope, and the fee to me BEFORE the wedding so I may be sure the license is in order. I will take and execute the license, mail it in, and within three weeks after the ceremony, you will receive a certified copy from the Clerk of Courts. In Florida, the license is good for 60 days. Florida residents have a 3 day waiting period. Out of state couples have NO waiting period. Blood tests are no longer required. PLEASE DO NOT FORGET TO BRING TO THE WEDDING: THE MARRIAGE LICENSE SIGNED BY TWO WITNESSES, THE RETURN ENVELOPE, AND THE FEE. The ceremony cannot be performed without it. I will look to the groom to have these to me before the ceremony Often I have multiple requests for the same date even months in advance. Consequently, I work on a first come, first serve basis.

Your date will be reserved ONLY when I have received the enclosed form completed and signed. I feel very honored and pleased to have been chosen to preside at your wedding ceremony. In my more than 50 years of performing weddings, I find that most brides are so concerned with many other details that in regard to the ceremony itself, they prefer to simply show up, look gorgeous and let me do the work. However, if you wish to be involved, I welcome and encourage you to call me, visit with me, or in any way be in touch. I welcome your input and remain very sensitive to the fact that this is YOUR SPECIAL DAY. It is most important that your ceremony begin at the scheduled time. It is not unusual for me to have aother ceremony following yours.

With blessings and affection,
Father Lee G. Ganim