August 29th was the Town of Fort Frances’ first ever Elopement Day. An idea thought up and brought to life by the Clerks department. This new initiative aims to give couples a new option for their nuptials.
2024 saw a significant demand for civil ceremonies from the Town, with the Clerks department reporting nearly double the number of civil ceremonies booked from previous years. With the demand, the Clerks seized the opportunity to expand on the already available wedding packages.
Before the advent of Elopement Days, the Town offers couples the options to get married in the Council Chambers or the Civic Centre property, a simple Office Marriage where couples sign their licence and have their ceremony in roughly 15 mins (provided the couples have applied online ahead of time), or they can book a Clerk to officiate their wedding off-site and after hours, pending their availability.
Now, couples can go online to select a timeslot to be married during an Elopement Day. This option is to give couples a no-muss-no-fuss wedding, where the location is predetermined when they book, and decorated when they arrive.
To ensure the day runs smoothly and on schedule, couples are asked a minimum of one week in advance of the ceremony to apply for their marriage licence online and upload their I. D’s with their application. This way, the Clerks can have their licence pre-filled for them on the day of, and if there is anything missing or any errors, there is time to adjust as needed. The couples are then given the option to pay ahead of time or pay on the day of the ceremony and bring their receipt with them.
When the big day arrives, the Clerks are busy, busy, busy! They need to ensure all of the licences are ready, get to the location to set up, and then officiate the ceremonies. The August 29th ceremony was unique because to kick off the initiative, they hosted a giveaway for one couple to win a free ceremony performed by Mayor Andrew Hallikas in tandem with a Clerk performing the legal part as officiant, to ensure the marriage was legally binding.
Dressed in a suit and tie, Mayor Hallikas took the occasion seriously and even contributed to writing the couple’s ceremony. His biggest contribution was a heartfelt quote about love from a book called “The Prophet” by Kahlil Gibran, making the ceremony unique to other ones performed earlier in the day.
The Clerks department is still looking for local businesses to partner with them for future Elopement Days. Businesses can contribute by donating gifts, allowing use of their space as a venue, or they are welcome to suggest other potential partnership options.
To inquire about partnering as a business, or to book your own Elopement Day ceremony, visit https://www.fortfrances.ca/town/administration-finance/marriages/fortever-after-town-wedding-ceremonies or please contact clerks@fortfrances.ca.
