A gay Christian wedding in Raleigh, North Carolina, with custom monograms, a balloon-tunnel entrance and an LED memorial wall 

Jeffrey (he/him) and Corddarryl (he/him) wanted their Raleigh, North Carolina, gay Christian wedding to be luxe, romantic and fabulous. Every detail, from the red florals to the Louboutin shoes on their feet, reflected a glam aesthetic. Lush roses and hydrangeas adorned the venue, with accents of gold, black and ivory adding to the elegant vibe.

The husbands-to-be selected custom monograms to complete their luxurious wedding aesthetic, including the design on the dance floor, signage, cake and ring boxes. A balloon-tunnel entrance greeted guests as they arrived at the venue, and an LED memorial wall paid tribute to Corddarryl (Corey) and Jeffrey’s loved ones.

The wedding party included groomsmen, who wore white-and-black tuxedos, and groomsmaids, who donned ivory gowns and elegant updos. Jeffrey and Corey wore complementary red and black tuxedos with intricate floral designs and matching gold wristwatches.

After getting ready for their indoor ceremony together, both grooms walked down the aisle with their mothers. Jeffrey went first and waited at the altar for Corey. They wrote their own vows, and the ceremony highlighted their Christian faith, with a special nod to the church they both have been attending since before they met each other.

We caught up with the husbands to hear more about their love story and wedding day.

Tell us your love story!

We met at the mailboxes of Jeffrey’s old apartment complex in Raleigh. Corey was working on duty as a mail carrier, and Jeffrey was with his future best man, Torrance, when they decided to make an impromptu trip to Walmart. Corey immediately caught the attention of Jeffrey with a simple “hello” as he turned back around to continue working while conversing on his headset. We both noticed that Corey was wearing his crimson Kappa Alpha Psi jacket, and Jeffrey was wearing a black Alpha Phi Alpha jacket.

Jeffrey expressed his interest for Corey to his best friend and wished he had spoken a bit more with him. He even went as far as saying that he should leave his phone number and a message in the mailbox for Corey to find. Jeffrey told Torrance that if Corey was still there, he would go back and speak to him.

They were gone for close to an hour, and Jeffrey knew in his head that Corey was probably finished working and would likely be gone. To their surprise, the mail truck was still parked outside when they returned. Corey was finalizing his mail distribution before leaving. The funny part is that this was not Corey’s actual mail route, and he was filling in for the permanent carrier who was off work that day.

Jeffrey took a deep breath and went to formally meet Corey. His pickup line to Corey was: “Do you go to church around here? I feel like I’ve seen you sing in church before.” They didn’t exchange numbers at that time, but did follow each other on Instagram. It wasn’t until later that evening that they messaged each other with formalities of meeting and exchanged numbers. From that point on, history was made.

What advice would you give to engaged LGBTQ+ couples or marriers?

Take your time and be aware of your budget. You don’t have to go broke on just one day, and there are plenty of ways to make this one day special that don’t require you to break the bank. Keep love at the forefront so that at moments when you have disagreements about the wedding planning process, you have something foundational to stand back on.

What advice would you give to vendors and venues working with LGBTQ+ marriers?

Be aware of your outdated languages on your websites and social media. We were able to easily identify who supported us by the lack of visibility of people like us on their sites and the traditional language they used.

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