With help from a generous parish, five couples tie the knot
For the third year in a row, St. Benedict’s Church arranged for
the marriages of Catholic couples who wouldn’t be able to afford
the traditional ritual.
With help from a generous parish, five couples tie the knot
For the third year in a row, St. Benedict’s Church arranged for the marriages of Catholic couples who wouldn’t be able to afford the traditional ritual.
This year, the parish broke the record: five couples – five brides and five grooms – got hitched last Saturday in a single ceremony in Hollister. The mass wedding has been a tradition at the Parish on the weekend closest to every Sept. 16, following the downtown parade for Mexican Independence Day.
Four of the couples are migrant field workers and the fifth is an older couple that also wouldn’t be able to afford such an elaborate wingding on their own. Members of the Parish pitched in for live mariachi and “conjunto” bands, bushels of flowers, brought enough pot luck dishes for an army and did a flurry of preparation for the event.
“The music was non-stop,” said Father Rudy Ruiz, pastor of St. Benedict’s who officiated over the 10-ring marriage.
“It impresses me how the parish comes together to ensure these couples have a beautiful celebration of their marriages,” Ruiz added.
The five lucky couples are Randel Del Real and Yolanda Rivera, Lucio Martinez and Jessie Muñoz, Vidal Ochoa and Martha Ochoa, Felix Mendez and Teodula Rios, and Jesus Marcus and Amalia Aguirre.
