Read what makes Wish Upon a Wedding so special to all of us.
What is the name of your company/organization, your title in the company and how long have you been in business?
Wish Upon A Wedding New Jersey. Official Launch January 2011. National organization est. January 2010 and now has over 14 active chapter with many more to be launched all over the country in 2011
How did you get started?
This is best explained in a message by Wish Upon A Wedding Founder Liz Guthrie: " My name is Liz Guthrie and I am the Founder and Executive Director of Wish Upon a Wedding.
Our organization began as an idea in September of 2009, and officially launched in January of 2010. Based on the concept that two people in love should never be denied the chance to marry their soul mate, we help couples who have endured much greater challenges than the average person. Specifically, Wish Upon a Wedding provides weddings and vow renewals for couples who have faced terminal illness or other serious life-altering circumstances.
The idea to start a nonprofit wish granting organization came to me when I was producing a large scale wedding giveaway in San Francisco in 2009. Over 350 couples entered to win a contest where there could only be one winner. With so many couples in need, I found myself wishing there was a way to donate a dream wedding to more than just one deserving pair.
One couple who entered, in particular, stood out in my mind. Vanessa Muza Teskey was battling Stage IV Hodgkin's Lymphoma while her fiance (an officer in the US Air Force) was deployed overseas. This couple ended up winning the Giveaway (through public voting) and their Love Story inspired the creation of Wish Upon a Wedding.
Securing over 40 vendors to donate their goods and services to a deserving couple was an easy task. The wedding industry was quite hungry for this opportunity to help couples who had been dealt such serious life altering circumstances. I was amazed and humbled by the willingness of wedding vendors to GIVE GIVE GIVE.
As a child, and throughout my life, I have always participated in nonprofit service. I was raised that the right thing to do is to give back to the community that sustains you whenever possible. As a wedding planner, with a background in nonprofit work, I was looking for a way to combine these elements. Starting Wish Upon a Wedding seemed to be the most natural fit that enabled me to act on my deeply instilled values of giving back.
Once I decided to take that leap, my strong ties to the event planning industry allowed me to tap into an amazing wealth of resources in the San Francisco bay area. I called upon my colleagues and asked them if they would like to join me on this mission, and the overwhelming reply was YES! Wish Upon a Wedding was officially born in January of 2010.
Dedicated to providing weddings and vow renewal celebrations for couples facing terminal illness and serious life-altering circumstances, regardless of sexual orientation, we grant one of the most profound moments in a couple's lifetime. It is my hope that through various media outlets, we can also raise awareness about the many life-threatening diseases that impact so many thousands of lives every day.
What better way to celebrate life than being surrounded by one's family and loved ones, while creating memories for those family and loved ones that will be cherished for years to come? By bringing these ceremonies to individuals faced with terminal illnesses, we believe that other people facing similar situations will find their own sense of strength and hope.
Thank you for making these Wedding Wishes come true.
What kind of interesting things will you show us at the Bride Chic: Bergen County Brides, event on December 2?
We will bring awareness to this wonderful organization and invite brides and vendors to help in any way they can!
Tell us something random about you
Our board members come from all over the NJ 'wedding world' including Couture Stationers, A Master Bridal Consultant (1 of 59 in the World!), a DJ, a Celebrity planner, a florist, and more!
PLEASE VISIT OUR EVENT TO BENEFIT WISH UPON A WEDDING NEW JERSEY. OUR DONATION GOAL IS $1000 --- PLEASE HELP US GET THERE!
FAN THEM ON FACEBOOK, AT WISH UPON A WEDDING NEW JERSEY