Jett and Chelsea are originally from Minnesota but decided to have a destination wedding in Puerto Rico. They were engaged for three years before officially tying the knot. Their ceremony was held at Flamenco Beach on Culebra Island, and they were legally wed in Minnesota a few days later. 

 

 

FROM THE BRIDE 

At the time I got down on one knee and asked Chelsea to marry me, it was illegal to get married as a gay couple in my state, Minnesota. So, we decided to have a long engagement because we were waiting and hoping for our state of Minnesota to have Marriage Equality pass someday and become LAW. Well…thanks to the overwhelming love of Minnesota citizens and our state goverment it PASSED in June 2014. So yay! We can now get married legally.

We decided to get married in Culebra, PR, because it is where I asked Chelsea to marry me in 2011. We know it is not legal yet for same sex couples to marry in Puerto Rico, but we wanted to have our ceremony there anyway. Chelsea and I are brought to our knees in gratitude. Our state recognized that LOVE is what matters in marriage, not the gender of the person you are marrying. 

I’ve always thought of myself as a citizen of the world and that giving myself to humanity is part of my life’s purpose. For the last six years I have been working with victims and survivors of domestic abuse in an emergency shelter for adults and children. In working with these lovely human beings, my purpose is to be a part of instilling hope and healing and to provide them a safe place to grow. I have found that it’s my calling, and it’s where my inner peace resides. I work with them individually and facilitate support groups as well.

FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHER 

As a photographer this wedding was particularly important to me. It was my first same sex wedding! I had been photographing tropical destination weddings in Puerto Rico for the past five years. It was an extremely freeing experience photographing a same sex wedding. I didn’t have to follow any of the rules I usually would usually follow when photographing a hetero couple. In traditional wedding photography, posing and composition is based on creating balance between the masculine and the feminine. For this wedding, I had two very beautiful and feminine women in gorgeous white dresses to pose.

They looked like ethereal goddesses on the white sanded beach. The usual poses (groom dipping bride, groom kneeling in front of bride, bride being held by the groom, etc.) didn’t apply here. I had an opportunity to do something totally unique and different. I was able to look at Jett and Chelsea as two people. Regardless of gender I saw two people who were very much in love, and that’s all that matters.

VENDORS

Venue: Private Residence

Photography: Rincon Images

Catering: The Homeless Dog Cafe