Island Is National Hot Spot for Wedding Celebrations

By ALEXIS TONTI

Word has it that the Island is among the most popular spots in the world to get married. "I know I've heard that," said Toby Wilson, executive director of the Martha's Vineyard Chamber of Commerce. "There's also Vegas," he offered. "And Paris. But the Island is right up there."

Weddings have become an Island industry unto itself. And the chamber of commerce is the go-to place for many who are in the early stages of planning. They've even devoted a portion of their web site to a wedding services directory - from the basics of blood tests and marriage licenses to the optional frills, such as a horse and carriage service to and from the church.

The chamber is also ready with a thick packet of brochures and pamphlets for anyone who prefers to have something more hands-on. The web site and mailing essentially amount to a how-to guide for getting married on the Vineyard.

Though the chamber acts as an information clearing house more than anything else, its employees have developed a sense for the volume of the Island wedding business - a season which loosely runs from May to October.

"From Labor Day through Columbus Day, especially," said Mr. Wilson, "I'd estimate there are about 40 weddings per weekend." He added that they're not all big, eye-catching affairs; people hold small ceremonies on the beach or rent houses for the week.

"Most of them have Island connections," said Janet Heath, events coordinator for the Martha's Vineyard Preservation Trust. "I'd say 90 per cent. But - it may just be that they've visited the Island.

"Families today are more split up and spread out," she said. "Everybody has to travel anyway, so they just want a nice spot to go."

The preservation trust owns and manages several properties that are popular with the wedding crowd, including the Dr. Daniel Fisher House in Edgartown, which often hosts post-ceremony receptions and brunches for out-of-town guests. Next door, another of their properties, the Old Whaling Church, sees about 30 weddings per year; the Grange Hall in West Tisbury hosts about 10.

"Earlier this week I had a conversation with a woman in Dallas. She said it's been easier to plan her wedding 2,000 miles away than right there in her home town," said Ms. Heath. "That's how helpful everyone is here on the Island - and how much we have to offer."

Other favorite places to perform the wedding ceremony are the Island lighthouses. The Martha's Vineyard Historical Society acts as steward for three: the Edgartown, Gay Head and East Chop lights. Last year they booked 44 weddings among them.

"We've had 29 applications so far for 2002, and a couple for 2003 already," said the historical society's Rudy Kuser, who handles the details of planning and coordination. Like Ms. Heath, he thinks that the majority of brides and bridegrooms have some Vineyard connection, be it from time spent living or visiting here. He added that the historical society is currently conducting a survey to learn how people found out about the possibility of a lighthouse wedding.

June and September are their busiest months; sometimes the lighthouses host two and even three ceremonies in the same day. "It's busy," Mr. Kuser said. "But as long as people are willing to compromise on times, we get it done."

That kind of tight scheduling in peak wedding season is something Mr. Wilson can speak to as well. From his time as a cab driver, he recalled driving a particular double-booked priest from Chappaquiddick to Menemsha. "The line for the ferry was too long and backed up," Mr. Wilson said. "So finally he left his car and just came across and got a cab. I was speeding to get him there on time, and I kept wondering if this is one of those situations - like when a woman's in labor - where you might get pulled over, but it's okay."

The number of 2002 weddings continues to climb. Ms. Heath, Mr. Kuser and the employees at the chamber of commerce all had fielded inquiries just that day. And everyone knows, with the start of the wedding season still three months away, there's plenty of time for the calls to keep coming.

Originally published on February 22, 2002