At the end of the chapel’s 72-foot aisle, elaborate flower arrangements sprawled across the alter, interspersed with gleaming candelabras. Evergreen boughs with white ribbons adorned the sides of each pew.

The sound of organ music filled the room, accompanied by a brass ensemble and bell choir.

This was the scene for Syracuse University 2000 graduate Jessica Bowerman’s wedding. But the scene wasn’t that from a royal castle. It was at the campus’ own Hendricks Chapel.

“Everything about the service went perfectly,” she said. “It was like something out of a fairy tale.”

Bowerman and her husband were married in Hendricks for both aesthetic and practical reasons.

“We thought Hendricks Chapel was so beautiful,” Bowerman said. “It has the gorgeous long aisle. I had gone to the church when I was an undergrad … (and) I had always been really involved with the chapel.”

Because the couple did not like any facilities in their hometowns, and because Syracuse has many more hotels and banquet facilities, it was much more practical to have the wedding at the university’s chapel.

“There are just a lot more resources in Syracuse,” she said.

Most people who are married in the chapel are alumni, said Sue Martini, Hendricks Chapel’s scheduling secretary. Many of these alumni decide to have their wedding at the chapel for convenience and because couples have such fond memories of the school.

To use the chapel for a wedding, couples pay a refundable deposit of $150, and then $150 for the service. But if the couple chooses to have a guest officiant preside, then the rental is $250. The couple must pay more for a guest officiant because Hendricks also needs to provide a chaplain for the service. The fee for the chapel organist ranges from $150 to $200.

Couples can choose among the Hendricks chaplains to preside over the service, or they can hire a guest official to preside. If the couple cancels the wedding more than six months in advance, then they receive a full refund. However, if the couple cancels less than two weeks before the wedding, no refund is given.

Although other people, besides current students, staff, alumni or their children are permitted use the chapel, the staff does not encourage weddings for those who are not affiliated with the university.

“We don’t say no to others, but we discourage it,” she explained.

The rental fee for those who are not affiliated with the University is $1000, Martini said. With a guest officiant, the cost is $1100.

Martini said she schedules weddings one year in advance, and Mar. 1 is the first day couples can set a wedding date for the year ahead. The chapel holds about 30 weddings in the summer and about 10 during the rest of the year, Martini said.

Because Hendricks Chapel is an interfaith chapel, the services and staff show equal respect for each religious denomination.

“If it’s an interfaith marriage, we need to recognize all traditions, rules and regulations, and make it appropriate for each faith,” Martini said.

Each couple works with a wedding coordinator that is present at the wedding rehearsal and ceremony. He or she answers any questions and helps with all of the details, Martini said.

“Usually the couples really appreciate that there is a wedding coordinator,” Martini said.

The chapel provides candelabra for each wedding but the couple is responsible for hiring a florist. Florists must follow strict regulations and cannot use balloons or adhesive tape, the form states.

Birdseed must be kept outdoors and the wedding car or limousine can drive across the sidewalk in front of the chapel. Videographers and photographers are expected to dress appropriately for the services and no flash photography can be used during the ceremony. However, before and after the ceremony, with the couple’s permission, pictures can be taken.

“We have a good system here for weddings,” she said. “They run smoothly and work very well.”

Published on October 29, 2002 at 12:00 pm