NEW ORLEANS — COVID-19 has put life on hold for a lot of people, including those who were hoping to say ‘I do.’ New Orleans is a popular wedding destination, so what does it look like for those who’ve had to postpone their celebration?
Colorado couple Randi Cappelletti and Kyle Robinson should be busy putting final touches on their April 5th wedding.
“We loved the date 4.5.20 because 4x5=20,” said Cappelletti.
With a deep love for New Orleans they knew the Crescent City would be the perfect place for the ceremony.
"We love New Orleans,” said Cappelletti. “If you’re going to throw a party, there’s no better city on earth to throw it in.”
"We were in New Orleans actually at Commanders Palace celebrating an anniversary and we got engaged,” said Robinson. “So it’s also why we decided to get married in New Orleans.”
Things, for the most part, were going smooth, but COVID-19 had other plans.
“It evolved rather quickly from maybe we can do it, to yeah, this isn’t happening,” said Robinson.
“So my final dress fitting was the 12th,” remembers Cappelletti. “My mom flew out for it. It was supposed to be a really fun, special time. We went to dinner that Friday night, Kyle, my mom, and I, and I started crying and said I don’t think this is going to happen.”
They’re one of many couples who’ve had to come up with a Plan-B because of what’s happening.
“So right now we’ve postponed six weddings and one corporate event,” said Amanda Price.
Price owns Amanda Price Events. She says the past few weeks have been rough. However, while it’s never easy postponing a wedding, right now, she says, there’s no other option.
“I think for me personally this has been tough,” said Price. It’s really emotionally tough for them, so for me, I need to be a rock for them. And we’re seeing all the vendors being incredibly kind and generous, and really helping us help our couples.”
While this situation is unprecedented, for planners like Price, they know to always expect and plan for the unexpected.
“Given the scale that it’s happening it’s tough because there are so many unknowns,” she said. “Emotionally it’s tough but I think that New Orleans especially, our planners have the ability to handle this because we see it sometimes in hurricane season and other things.”
She encourages couples to use this time at home wisely, and look at the positive.
“For couples postponing, this is some extra time to enjoy your love for each other,” she said. “And while we’re all under quarantine just enjoy each other and think about the things you may be overlooking. And really look forward to the fact that when this is all over, it will be prime time for people wanting to celebrate. So if you thought people were wanting to celebrate before, they’ll really be ready to celebrate you now.”
As for Randi and Kyle, their April 5th wedding will now be July 12th. The move for them was fortunately easy since all vendors could accommodate the date.
“Grateful that everybody is still able to be there, and we’ll be there able to celebrate each other,” said Robinson.
“And we’re experiencing a tremendous amount of gratitude that we’re healthy and safe and our loved ones are healthy and safe,” said Randi.
However, they also aren’t letting COVID-19 ruin their happily ever after. On April 5th, they plan on going into the mountains, exchanging vows with each other and sign their marriage license (which in Colorado does not need an officiant or witnesses). Proving that this virus won’t take away their love for each other.
“We’re going to come out of the other side of whatever this looks like,” said Robinson. “We persevered, we pushed through and made it the best we could and we still have each other.”
“It was important for us to feel like COVID-19 postponed our wedding, but it didn’t postpone our marriage,” said Cappelletti.
More Stories:
► Get breaking news from your neighborhood delivered directly to you by downloading the new FREE WWL-TV News app now in the IOS App Store or Google Play.
