Couples Tribute: Jennifer & Leo

Jennifer and Leo were married on April 24, 2020 in a garden/tented wedding celebration at Celebrate Snug Harbor. It was a very romantic, memorable day for all.

Why did you pick Snug Harbor for your wedding, was there any special reason?

Leo stumbled upon Celebrate Snug Harbor while bike riding through he park. As luck would have it, Leo walked into Celebrate to use the bathroom while a wedding was taking place. He loved everything about Celebrate! It ending up being the only place we looked at for our wedding.

“Our wedding date was 4/24/2021, which was probably the most special part and solidified that Celebrate Snug Harbor had to be our wedding venue. When we were discussing available dates we knew we wanted a Saturday in Spring. April 24th was the only one available. April 24th just so happens to be one of my best friends’ birthdays. She was killed in a car accident in 2019. We took it as a sign from her so that was very beautiful and meaningful to us.”

Can you tell us about your wedding dress?

I work as a psychiatric emergency clinician on the frontline. During covid, there were several companies that generously hosted raffle prizes to show appreciation to frontline workers. I was encouraged to enter the Brides Across America Raffle to win a wedding dress. A few months later I was notified that I was chosen as their winner! I was able to shop at Bridal Reflections on 5th avenue in Manhattan and was able to pick out my dream wedding dress.

When I tried on this dress, I knew immediately that it was the dress! Leo had always told me he wanted me to be in a princess dress, so for our first look I surprised him by adding an over skirt and straps. Another crazy part is that unbeknownst to me, the over skirt I bought was the exact same one I had in my wedding book. I didn’t realize until way later. It was the perfect combination of a form fitting dress for me and a princess dress for Leo.

Where on the grounds of Snug Harbor did your wedding take place?

We had our wedding ceremony in the Tuscan Garden and our reception followed in the Tented Pavilion.

Did you have a wedding planner or any DIY elements?

We did not have a wedding planner, but Erin at Celebrate Snug Harbor went above and beyond with everything for us.

We are both very detail oriented so we had a bunch of DIY elements and special things included. We are both therapists, so being mindful and living in the moment is big for us. Having that incorporated to our wedding day was very meaningful to us.

Did you have a certain wedding theme or color scheme?

The most important thing to us was to have a warm and loving vibe for our wedding. We used rose gold as our main color and added other soft colors to compliment our decor.

We made signs, candle holders, and probably painted everything rose gold ourselves. We also made the sparkler signs, painted and glittered the matches and made sure everything from the charger plates to the napkin rings were hand picked or painted by us, even the cake topper.

Leo made the dance floor love sign himself! I totally didn’t see myself as crafty person prior to this but this really inspired us to make sure we had everything we wanted for our wedding.

What was your 1st Dance Song?

For our first dance we danced to Never Break by John Legend.

Advice for future celebrate couples?

“Have fun with it and do it together! This is an introduction to married life and being able to know that you’re a team and that you don’t have to carry all of the weight of this big event really makes it such a fun process.”

We are so lucky to have delightful couples like Jennifer & Leo to work with at Celebrate Snug Harbor. A special thank you to Dream Life Wedding Photography who was on hand to capture every moment of this special wedding.