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Weddings

About

Joan Fergus is a professional wedding officiant serving southeastern Wisconsin and northeastern Illinois. Officiating weddings since 2013, her passion is crafting and delivering exceptional ceremonies that will bring your story to life.

Joan listens and makes it a priority to get to know couples, developing an understanding of their individual style and taste.

Her talent for writing and her calm and warm presence helps your wedding ceremony have a look of professionalism and elegance. Your love story is unique, so your ceremony should be, too!

Private elopements, license signing, and minimonies are options, embracing nontraditional and traditional ceremonies of all faiths and genders.

Check out the testimonials left by happy couples. Click 'Reviews' above.

  • Woman-owned
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Frequently asked questions

Which of the following are included in the price of your wedding officiant services?

Ceremony Rehearsal

Does starting price include the ceremony rehearsal?

No

What is the starting price for ceremony rehearsals?

$50

What types of weddings and events do you provide services for?

Non-religious
Interfaith
Ceremony Rehearsal
Vow Renewal
Civil Union

What religious affiliations do you serve?

No Denomination

On average, how long are wedding ceremonies you officiate?

Less than 30 mins.

In which states are you licensed?

IL
WI

What languages do you speak?

English

Reviews of Ceremonies by Joan

Elise
Elise Sent on 01/14/2022
5 out of 5 rating

We highly recommend Joan for a wedding officiant!!

We are so unbelievably happy that we chose Joan to officiate our wedding!! She was professional, on top of everything, and really went out of her way to make sure everything about the ceremony was exactly the way we had envisioned it. Our custom love story she created was beautiful and we wouldn't have changed a single thing about our ceremony with her. We would highly recommend her to anyone looking for a wedding officiant!!
H
Hannah Sent on 11/29/2021
5 out of 5 rating

The best of the best!

Joan helped make our wedding the best day ever! Joan was kind, knowledgeable, and understanding. She really took the time to get to know me and my husband and it helped make our ceremony extra special. Joan was a great asset at the rehearsal and helped make everyone feel comfortable with their wedding role! I would highly recommend Joan! She was also very easy to communicate with which helped ease a lot of stress!
L
Lily Sent on 07/06/2021
5 out of 5 rating

Caring, Detailed - Creates Amazing Ceremonies!

Joan was such an important part of our wedding day and ceremony! She wrote us the most beautiful ceremony and made it one of the most memorable parts of the day for us. She is truly such a special person and values her time with the couples that she works with. She puts great thought and care into capturing what makes the two of you special and shares that with the group in attendance at your special day. We would not have chose anyone else to work with or have had anyone else marry us. Joan is amazing!
Erica
Erica Sent on 06/22/2021
5 out of 5 rating

Perfect pandemic ceremony!

Joan was wonderful. We were struggling with our wedding plans amid the pandemic and she helped ease our anxiety as soon as we met her. She really got to know us and incorporated so much of both of our personalities and personal stories into our ceremony. My aunt was supposed to be our officiant but the pandemic and cancer (she's ok!) had other ideas. Joan worked with us to figure out how to still incorporate my aunt into the virtual ceremony and even had her on FaceTime on her cellphone for the opening message. We are so grateful to have found her and she was such a calming aspect of our crazy pandemic wedding.
Emily
Emily Sent on 01/16/2021
5 out of 5 rating

Amazing!! Everything I could ask for and more!!

Joan was the perfect fit for us. After having a difficult time finding an officiant who would do the ceremony like we wanted, we were able to find Joan! She was amazing to sit down and talk to. So easy to open up to. We wanted something shorter and not religious and something that just flower and emphasized on our relationship and our love for each other and Joan did exactly that. The ceremony was perfect. I think about it a lot because I just love how happy we were and how much love I felt in that room. I would recommend Joan to do anyone’s ceremony because she makes it for what you want and what kind of couple you are. The ceremony was everything I could ask for and more!
M
Molly Sent on 12/13/2020
5 out of 5 rating

Couldn't Have Dreamed of a Better Ceremony

My now-husband and I have nothing but good things to say about our experience working with Joan as our officiant. When the pandemic took over our original wedding plans, Joan was continuously flexible with our what seemed like never-ending changing of plans. She offered us support when we needed it, and when we were stressed out, she reminded us why we were planning a wedding in the first place - to become husband and wife. Leading up to our wedding, Joan worked with us over video calls, where she would ask us questions about our love story and our expectations for our marriage and translating this information into a truly customized ceremony script. Joan even had worksheets and examples for us to refer to when it came to vows, ring words, and the marriage address, so we could choose wording and passages that resonated the most with us and our personal style. Joan ended up officiating our ceremony in an intimate outdoor setting with our closest family and friends. At the end of the ceremony, each of our guests told us they loved and appreciated how personal the ceremony felt and what an excellent job Joan did! Because of the unusual circumstances, we will now be holding our postponed reception in 2021, and we plan on working with Joan again to put together a "vow renewal" type of ceremony for all of our friends and family who were unfortunately unable to be there to witness our vows this year. We are already looking forward to another opportunity to work with Joan!
Emily
Emily Sent on 08/15/2020
5 out of 5 rating

Amazing Ceremony!

Planning a wedding during the COVID-19 pandemic had many moments of uncertainty. Joan helped us through many moment of uncertainty and was willing to create the perfect wedding ceremony regardless of the ceremony changes we might of needed to make. Joan met with us various times to review our ceremony, she offered suggestions on what she thought would be best, and made sure the items that were important to us were included. Joan also ran our rehearsal which was fabulous, she really took the lead to ensure everyone felt comfortable and knew their role for the day. We received many compliments regarding our ceremony! It was a remarkable day and Joan made our ceremony a moment we will cherish forever. I highly recommend Joan for your wedding ceremony!
G
Gina Sent on 08/13/2020
5 out of 5 rating

Professional and Enjoyable

It's not easy planning a wedding during a worldwide pandemic but Joan was constantly present and always checking in to make sure we were taken care of and effectively planning. She made sure to e-mail us just to check in and to let us know that she is available for anything. During the ceremony, Joan would provide little gestures to the bride and groom to set ease on their nerves and provide some humor. With Joan's checkins throughout our entire experience as well as her patience throughout this process, we could not be happier with our choice in officiant. Thank you Joan for helping make this one of the best days of our lives.
C
Carly Sent on 07/27/2020
5 out of 5 rating

We Love Joan!!

Joan made our rehearsal day + our wedding day smooth, it was an absolute pleasure to work with her and we loved having her as a part of our big day! We would recommend her to ANYONE!!

She made our - middle of the pandemic not so perfect wedding - a PERFECT WEDDING. She was the calm of the day and we couldnt have been happier to have her there with us.
C
Claire Sent on 06/11/2020
5 out of 5 rating

The perfect person to be apart of your special day!

Joan was absolutely amazing! We couldn’t have asked for a better officiant for our wedding. I found her on Wedding Wire and read through the comments and all I could see was positive feedback. Little did I know that everything I read was true! She took the time to get to know us and to find out what our vision was for our ceremony. Not only was she helpful with our ceremony planning, but when the Coronavirus ruined all our original wedding plans, Joan was there to offer her flexibility and friendship during that frustrating time. She was a complete stranger to us but was so caring and sweet through all of it that it felt like she was a good friend of ours by the time our wedding did take place. She made our special day perfect, more than we could have imagined. We can’t thank her enough for her flexibility and kindness. Joan truly is a wonderful and professional officiant, you will not go wrong picking her to be apart of your special day!
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Awards

28
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2021 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2020 Winner

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