Loved the webpage! Reading up on the practice of Jack and Jills brought to mind my own
experience. I went to a wedding of a very good college friend almost two years ago, and
came across a custom that I have discovered many of my friends know about and whose
families have practices for years! The DJ announced that the dancing was beginning, but
for no couples to take to the floor quite yet. The bride took a walk around the dance
floor (much like a filly at a State Fair) while the DJ asked that all men come forward and
pay a dollar to dance with the bride!! Another friend relayed to me that she was locked in
a room at the rehearsal and while her mother and brother grabbed a microphone and
announced that the guests would have to pay a ransom for the bride to return to the
reception! The groom went to every table and guests were requested to put the money in his
shoe! These traditions are totally alien to my family-- throwing the bouquet is about as
crazy as we get.
Last summer, my fiancé and I attended a small informal wedding were many corners were
cut in order to save money. The bride and groom did not exchange rings. The wedding and
reception were held in the same facility..etc. All of these things are reasonable. But the
following is not:
Several times during the reception a man announced over the loud speaker that the bride
and groom could not afford to take a honeymoon, so, he reminded us, please make sure that
you drop a donation in the wishing well for this beautiful young couple. But it did not
stop there. By the end of the evening, he and several other members of the bridal party
had gathered up buckets (Yes, I said buckets) and began to pass them around the hall,
shouting, "Donations to Chris and Sherrie's honeymoon go in here!"
