Introduction
Greetings to in the name of our Lord! We are happy for you that you have found love for each other and wish to be united in marriage. Hopefully we can be of help and service to you in the process of preparing for your wedding as well as afterward

Please take a few moments to look through this booklet. We feel that it is important that you understand our guidelines for people who are not members of Trinity, as your reading of these policies and willingness to follow them will aid in making the most of your wedding day.

Wedding Services
Weddings at Trinity are worship services. It is a sacred event in which we ask for God's blessing upon both of you as you declare your commitment to each other and begin your married life together. The wedding policies and guidelines in this booklet are all based on this Lutheran understanding of the Christian faith.

Trinity uses a Lutheran marriage liturgy for all weddings. We will make every effort to personalize your wedding within this church's understanding of the Christian faith. You will also have the chance to work out service order details with one of the pastors. For example, if you wish the celebration of Holy Communion as a part of the service, it should be offered to all present.

Weddings
&
public policies

Trinity Lutheran Church
Moline, Illinois
309.762.3624
E-mail: office@trinitylutheranmoline.org

Reserving the Church Building.
Please call the church office to schedule the use of the building for your wedding no less than three months before your planned wedding date. There are certain dates that we cannot hold weddings, including the week between Palm Sunday and Easter along with December 23rd through December 26th. Payment of the reservation fee will confirm your reservation (see the costs section at the back of the booklet for more information).

Trinity has a modern chapel with a pipe organ for up to 50 people and a sanctuary with brilliant stained glass windows and a larger pipe organ that can hold up to 450 people for your wedding. We have a lounge for the bridal party and a place for the groomsmen to prepare before the service. In addition, Founder's Hall and our Multi Purpose Room are available for a reception.

For rehearsals, we schedule up to one hour, and ask that all participants show consideration for others by being on time. The organist or other musicians may also be at the rehearsal. Their fees will include the rehearsal only if they are present.

We normally schedule three hours for each wedding. We can arrange for additional time, but we must ask for an additional fee due to added costs to the church. If you plan to use the church for your reception, you will need to contact the church office to reserve a hall or room.

Preparation for the Wedding
Weddings can be fairly simple or very elaborate at Trinity. We include in this booklet information on a number of these areas. Please feel free to contact us regarding any questions or concerns that you may have about your wedding at Trinity.

Preparation for your life together.
Pre-marriage preparation at Trinity includes the expectation that you will both meet with one of the pastors two or three times for informal counseling sessions. These sessions are designed to aid in laying the foundation of your life together. The last session will be dedicated to planning the wedding service.

Arranging for a pastor to officiate.
Please call the pastor that you wish to officiate at your wedding no later than three months prior to your planned wedding date. We recommend contacting the pastor as early as feasible to ensure that we can conduct your wedding on your desired date. The pastor will work with you regarding many aspects of the wedding service. Clergy from other congregations may participate in weddings at Trinity with one of our pastors if you desire.

Arranging for music.
Trinity's minister of music is responsible for all music ministries and will play or arrange for an organist for your wedding. The minister of music can also arrange for additional musicians and vocalists. We recommend that you coordinate with the minister of music shortly after you make your reservation. This person will assist you in music selection for the prelude, during the service, and for the postlude.

It is possible to arrange for another organist or musician, but please note that this church adheres to national standards in such matters. This means that a fee is paid to Trinity's organist even if another organist or pianist will play for the service. If outside groups wish to use our sound system, an audio technician from Trinity will need to set up the equipment. Please feel free to contact our minister of music for more information.

Arranging for a Wedding Consultant.
Our wedding consultant will serve in this capacity for all weddings at Trinity. This person will coordinate many details for you in additional to attending to many details during the rehearsal and wedding. The consultant will receive information regarding the wedding and share that information with other staff to ensure that there are no conflicts over the use of the building.

Music Policies
Since the marriage service is a worship service, all music needs to be selected with this in mind. The selection of music should have high standards of quality so that it may enhance the worship service. All music should reflect the praise of God befitting a worship service. Your pastor and the minister of Music would be happy to help you in this selection process.

Any approved music that is not part of Trinity's music library should be given to the minister of music at least two weeks before the wedding.

Flowers
We welcome flowers as a part of the wedding service. If you should retain a florist to supply flowers, we expect that no tape or pins are used on any of the church furniture or walls. Decorations on the ends of the pews may be attached with ribbons, rubber bands, or similar devices. We also do not place flowers directly on the altar, with the exception of a small arrangement as part of a unity candle.

Your flowers are yours to take with you after the service. Flower boxes should not be left behind in the church, and you may want to ask a friend to attend to this item.

The Wedding License
You will need a wedding license in accordance with Illinois State and Rock Island County laws for your wedding. Licenses from other jurisdictions are not valid. To obtain the license, contact the County Clerk in the Rock Island County courthouse. You will need to get the license no later than two weeks before the wedding, so we suggest that you obtain the license well in advance of your wedding.

We require that the wedding license be brought to the church office no later than two weeks before the wedding. In special situations this can be done at the rehearsal. We cannot conduct any wedding without receiving a copy of the marriage license by the time of the wedding rehearsal.

Receptions
The church facility may be reserved for receptions, and you can make these arrangements with the church office when you reserve the date of your wedding. We have two locations suitable for your reception, which are Founder's Hall and our Multi Purpose Room. Alcoholic beverages may not be used on church property. Please note that there is an additional fee for your use of the room, which varies based on the time used and the number of rooms used. Please contact out church office for more information.

Photography
Photographs and videos are important records of your wedding day, and we want you to have these items while at the same time not detracting from the worship service. These guidelines were formed with both goals in mind.

Photography during the rehearsal, before the service, during the processional, during the recessional, and after the service is acceptable.

Photography by guests and family during the service is inappropriate. This can be courteously placed in a wedding bulletin, and it will be announced by the pastor at the beginning of the service.

A professional photographer may stand in the back ten pews of the church and no closer to the altar to take flash pictures during the processional and the recessional. The photographer may use the balcony for photographs. During the service, all photography must be silent , without flash, and only from the balcony. Please ensure that your photographer is aware of these policies. The service will pause until the photographer leaves the building if these guidelines are ignored.

Video photography is acceptable during the ceremony from the balcony. Any other locations must be cleared in advance of the ceremony and must be stationary during the entire ceremony.

Candles
The six candles normally by the altar are there for your use at the wedding service at no cost to you. We will light them in advance of the service. If you wish them lit later, you will need to identify acolytes who will need to be trained beforehand.

Additional candles, provided that they do not block movement during the service, may be used but are not available from the church. Such additional candles need to be under some kind of glass, such as hurricane lamp style glass for safety purposes. You may, in consultation with the pastor, use a unity or wedding candle.

Bulletins
You have the option of using printed bulletins that will be given to guests as they arrive for the wedding. They are an outline of the order of worship and a memento of your special day. We can, upon request, provide you with a template of the service for your use in making up your wedding bulletin.

Custodial care.
Our custodian will clean the church before and after the wedding. This person will open the church two hours before the service and lock it afterwards. Earlier openings require an additional fee.

Other Church use Policies
We expect that the bride and the groom will ensure that all members of the wedding party understand the following policies and honor them. Failure to do so could result in the loss of your deposit.

No rice, bird seed, or confetti may be used due to safety and ecological concerns. Removal of such items generally requires picking it up by hand individually.

Smoking is also not permitted in the building for health and sanitary reasons.

No alcoholic beverages may be brought into the building outside of the wine for Holy Communion. Please note that we strictly adhere to this requirement.

We expect the wedding party to clean up personal belongings before leaving the church. We will hold on to left personal items such as coats and eyeglasses for up to two weeks after the ceremony before disposal.

Costs
We have sought to make the costs for marriage at Trinity reasonable given the costs to the church. Our current fee schedule was set up only after making a comparison with the fees of other similar size local churches.

When you schedule your wedding, we ask for a deposit of $300 to reserve your date and time. Weddings reserved by e-mail or by phone will be held for 10 days, allowing time for the deposit to be sent to the church office. This deposit cannot be applied toward other wedding fees.

The deposit will be refunded to you after the wedding has taken place and after all wedding fees have been fully processed. All or part of this deposit will not be returned if there is damage to the property, use of alcohol or drugs, or a disregard of our policies. If you cancel your wedding less than one week before the wedding, we may not be able to refund part or all your deposit, depending on our costs.

Fee Schedule

Pastoral honorarium $350.

^ Additional Pastors' Honorarium $200.

Organist $200.
(AGO * guidelines apply - rehearsal fee additional $50)

Materials for counseling $35.

Custodian & building security $75.

^ Early opening of the church $20. pr. hour
(beyond three hours)

Wedding Coordinator $100.

^ Vocal Soloist $75.

^ Audio Technician $100.

^ Instrumentalists Varies

^ Reception space Varies

Building use $300

Deposit (refundable afterwards) $300.

* American Guild of organists
^ If required

Conclusion

Thank you for considering Trinity Lutheran Church, Moline, for this special day. If you have any questions or concerns, please ask us about them. May God bless you as you plan your wedding.

Revised Summer 2007