No COVID-19 vaccine, no wedding invite: How couples are going about the new rules

 

Martha Blessington has been questioning whether to ask her wedding guests if they are vaccinated.

After getting engaged in 2018, she has tried to plan her wedding for three years and has postponed celebrations four times.

The Melbourne bride posted on a popular wedding forum asking for advice around vaccinations and wedding guests and was surprised by how many people engaged with it.

"I was just trying to find out what people are actually doing with COVID ramping up and different states speeding ahead with their vaccinations, and what they are doing to protect guests," Martha says.

The issue of vaccinations is one she's familiar with, as some people in her family are hesitant on getting vaccinated — but she says that she's leaning towards asking her guests to be vaccinated to attend.

"If you're having a big venue and a big celebration with your nearest and dearest, and it's your celebration that you're paying for, I think you can ask for whatever you want," she says.

Yes, I will be asking for vaccination proof

Depending on where you live in Australia, planning a wedding can be a little more complicated.

In New South Wales and Victoria, weddings are set to go ahead after reaching certain vaccination thresholds and in most cases only for double vaccinated couples and guests.

For 25-year-old Bella Manson, the answer is a no-brainer.

Her 16-year-old sister has battled through cancer twice and is severely immunocompromised, so she and her partner are asking for proof of vaccination to ensure her sister is protected.

For Bella, the situation is a 'no-brainer'.(Supplied)

"You know, we've seen her go through surgery after surgery and it was a no-brainer for us to say, 'everyone at our wedding has to be vaccinated', because we need to create a space that is as safe for everyone, but especially her, as we possibly could," she says.

Bella understands there may be some wedding guests that may choose not to get vaccinated and respects their choice but says she's owning her decision to turn away any unvaccinated guests to protect her sister.

Vendors and vaccination

Roberta Wijanco says that protecting her guests is a priority as well because her mum is also immunocompromised.

The 26-year-old and her partner live in Canberra but are planning on getting married in Queensland, with friends and family across Australia invited.

She has had to postpone her wedding once because of border closures and lockdowns and is now hoping to get married next year.

She and her partner support vaccination and will be asking their guests to be fully vaccinated if they want to attend, but her concern went beyond just guests.

Roberta says she had to 'part ways' with a potential wedding vendor because they disagreed on vaccinations.(Supplied)

Roberta recently parted ways with one of her wedding vendors because of a difference in belief on COVID-19 and vaccinations.

"I just wasn't comfortable having someone who was very much not willing to get vaccinated around my mum," she says.

How to plan a wedding around 'the talk'

Amy Parfett, the co-founder of WedShed, an online wedding directory, says COVID-19 has made the wedding planning process incredibly difficult on couples.

Amy Parfett and Mel McBride, co-founders of online wedding venue service, WedShed.(Supplied)

"We know that a lot of couples have felt like they've been kind of robbed of their wedding planning experience, which feels sad when it's such a huge milestone in people's lives," she says.

Amy's advice for couples that are currently planning their special day is to talk it out.

"If you're grappling with difficult decisions as a consequence of this pandemic, make them together," she says.

"Then move on and look forward to your celebration, whatever that looks like, and your life ahead."

With rules changing, the best thing to do is to keep an eye out on different state and territory health websites as to what their advice is. 

That's something Roberta has been doing, and she is still working out what's the best course of action for her upcoming wedding.

She's decided to send an electronic update to her guests along the lines of: "We really want to look out for the health and wellbeing of everyone that's attending, and will be asking for guests to be vaccinated".

But she said she will add a line to those who are choosing not to get vaccinated: "we'll look forward to celebrating with them at a later date in another way".

Despite the challenges COVID-19 has thrown at her, Roberta is just looking forward to marrying the love of her life.

"The thing that I'm looking forward to most is just us finally being able to get married and sort of move on to that next stage in our lives and making that commitment to each other," she says.

Source: www.abc.net.au