Sree and Josh get married at the Seattle Courthouse

This posting will cover Part Two of Sree and Josh’s wedding day, their civil ceremony held at the Seattle Municipal Courthouse.  Part One took place earlier in the day, at the Hindu Temple and Cultural Center, click on the link to see the Hindu ceremony (which was really pretty cool!).

Because it is difficult/impossible to actually reserve a time for a wedding at the Seattle Courthouse, I advised Sree and Josh that either they or someone else from their family should arrive at the Courthouse building early and make sure they were at the front of the line of couples waiting to get married.  I arrived on the early side, and as Sree, Josh and their family members arrived I got photos of all of them in a couple of different places outside the courtrooms.  You’ll see a few of those pictures in the photos below.  Sree, her mother and her sister-in-law all wore traditional Indian saris which made for some fun and colorful photos!

As it worked out, we got lucky and there were not a lot of other couples waiting to get married that day, so once the judges finished their work day and were available to perform ceremonies Sree and Josh were called to meet with a judge rather quickly.  After the judge reviewed their preferences for their ceremony, the rest of us were gathered and brought to the 12th floor and taken to the Jury Selection Room, where the ceremony would take place.  This is a beautiful room, with huge windows and a great view out over South Seattle, and with the Smith Tower located just to the west.  We moved into the room, moved a few chairs around to make a good space for the group, and got ready for the ceremony to begin.  Present for the ceremony were Sree and Josh; Sree’s parents Surendran (Dad) and Saraswathy (Mom); Sree’s brother Vivek and sister-in-law Anu; Josh’s parents Fred (Dad) and Eileen (Mom); Josh’s sister Ashley and brother-in-law Rico. Judge Kimi Kondo was officiating.  I have worked with Judge Kondo at several other weddings and always enjoy the way she runs her ceremonies.

Once everyone was in place, Judge Kondo got the ceremony underway.  Sree and Josh had opted for a very simple ceremony, and in just a few minutes they were pronounced husband and wife by the judge.  We then had a little time to take a few more family photos while the judge got all of the paperwork ready.  Sree and Josh signed the marriage certificates, with their fathers acting as the witnesses, and just like that they were officially married!

Here are a few photos from the afternoon, I hope that you like them.