Hi, my name is Lauren and I officiate weddings for sentimental, spontaneous couples who are excited to explore their love! I’m also reinventing the concept of “Wedding Officiant.” After attending many traditional wedding ceremonies, I began to notice that couples were missing a huge emotional opportunity to create a meaningful, engaging wedding ceremony that truly celebrated the essence of who they are. You see, I believe that getting married isn’t just about going through the motions; it’s an incredibly rich and dynamic emotional experience that has the power to bring people closer together. And because I couldn’t find anyone else doing just that, I decided to become the Wedding Officiant who would fill that gap!
Here’s a little more about me: I believe that all work days should include a mandatory 20 minute dance party, that everyone should fall in love with someone of the same gender at least once in their lives and that “I’m sorry” should be replaced with “thank you.” I’ve been known to stop for three scoops of chocolate ice cream on my way home from the gym, and sometimes I tell my wife I’m working when really I’m at home watching TV in my pajamas. Last but not least, I believe we should all say something GREAT about our partners every night before bed - especially when we don’t want to!
Interested in learning more? Visit my website www.laurensnead.love to schedule a free 45 min video consultation!
Services Offered Lauren Snead is an award winning Bay Area Wedding Officiant who works with couples from all over the world! She has been officiating civil unions, interfaith ceremonies, non-religious ceremonies, dress rehearsals, and vow renewals for over 12 years. She works with couples who belong to no denomination, offering counseling and customized vows to make the experience as loving as possible. She is gay friendly and offers premarital coaching, a meaningful, original ceremony, and a unique officiant experience. Lauren is licensed in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
First things first, it has taken my husband and I over a year to write this review... simply due to the fact that we were overwhelmed by the thought of using ONLY words to express just how amazing of a person and officiant Lauren is!
When we first met Lauren, her energy radiated positivity, openness and warmth. And this was felt just by talking to her via video chat! Lauren has a way of connecting with every single individual on a level where you feel safe, at ease and like you are at the center of her universe... I can only guess that this is what an interaction with Gandhi would resemble! :)
With all that is involved in planning a destination wedding in California, she took so much weight off of our shoulders by making the planning of the ceremony a breeze. John and I wanted to have a ceremony that represented us... two introverted, quirky, nerdy, sarcastic people that have been in a relationship for over 10 years. We also wanted to honor those that could not be at the ceremony for various reasons. Lauren was somehow able to wrap all of that into one ceremony. We truly felt like our relationship and the members of our support system were honored. Tailoring our ceremony in that way made for an unbelievably special and sacred moment.
The cherry on top is that weeks after the wedding, our family kept talking about Lauren! We reminded them that we waited ten years to get married and that we should be celebrated, but they insisted Lauren was the star! ;) I would say that a majority of our immediate family are now following her on social media because she left that great of an impression!
I told Lauren that the review would take some time to write because it would essentially be a love letter! Lauren, I hope that this was a decent love letter from John and I! We appreciate you so much and wish you and your beautiful family the best.
Just hire her! You won't regret it!
Sent on 06/06/2020
Lauren Snead Wedding Officiant's reply:
Tynesia & John, WOW! You made me legit cry. I am SO deeply touched by your review. It was well worth the wait! The most important thing in the world to me is that you both felt loved, supported and celebrated every step of the way! I am so glad that was your experience. I miss you two very much and am sending so much love to you and your amazing family! LOVE YOU ALL!!!!! PS - love the pics!!!!
John Rowney
· Getting married on 04/11/2022
5.0
Quality of service:
5.0
Responsiveness:
5.0
Value:
5.0
Flexibility:
5.0
Professionalism:
5.0
If you are considering having Lauren serve as your officiant, do not hesitate!
Lauren is absolutely amazing and I couldn’t even imagine our wedding day without her. Due to COVID we cancelled our original wedding and had to make a quick transition to a smaller, family-only ceremony in a completely different date/location/time than we had planned. We reached out to Lauren and after our first meeting we realized she is on a different level. Her energy just poured through the zoom meeting (not always easy to do!) and we knew instantly that she was the one for us. At a time where we had to worry about lots of fast cancellations, changes, and safety logistics, she made the ceremony preparation and meetings so enjoyable and took a huge weight off our shoulders.
One really special thing about Lauren’s process is that she does a pre-wedding process with each couple, challenging you to really dig into yourself, your partner, and what you both want from this special moment you will share together. She then crafts a completely personal ceremony from this process. She was able to take everything we wanted to include (a wine box ceremony, group blessing, handfasting) and tie them into a connected, beautiful and heartfelt ceremony. She also did a rehearsal and welcome circle with our families, which was honestly one of the most emotional and beautiful experiences of our wedding weekend.
Throughout our process, we had told Lauren that our main goal was to feel connected to each other and present throughout the day - she helped us do that and we can honestly say we felt so connected throughout the day, but especially the ceremony, which felt like we were the only people in the world. Our families loved everything and there were quite a few tears and laughs.
We could not have loved everything more. It is very rarely in life that you can say something was perfect - but we feel our wedding ceremony and day honestly was.
Thank you so much Lauren.
Sent on 01/07/2021
Lauren Snead Wedding Officiant's reply:
This morning I woke up to the most beautiful, heartwarming review! Thank you from the bottom of my heart John & Jenn! From the moment we met, it was easy to see how strong and powerful you each were individually and how you magnified each other's strengths and supported each other in such deep, important ways. I am so happy to hear that our journey together was so positive and meaningful for you! It was for me too. Also, your Welcome Circle? Oh man, not a dry eye!!! So amazing!! Thank you again and wishing you a wonderful journey ahead as a married couple! All my love, Lauren
Amanda Losch
· Getting married on 03/07/2022
5.0
Quality of service:
5.0
Responsiveness:
5.0
Value:
5.0
Flexibility:
5.0
Professionalism:
5.0
Endless Gratitude!
Lauren is on her own level. We wanted a custom ceremony that spoke to who were we are as people and what we wanted our marriage to be. And she delivered. She guided us through a thorough and beautiful process to create such a ceremony. She is more than a day of officiant, we spent a few months getting to know each other, through calls, her discovery process and our wedding weekend. We did not do any pre-marital counseling but found our sessions with Lauren more than just planning, they truly set us up for defining our marriage and preparing ourselves for it at the same time. She helpful reassure us through all the uncertainty of pandemic wedding planning. Due to covid we were separate from friends and family during our elopement. She facilitated a beautiful zoom call the night before that helped us feel connected to our loved ones. We felt so seen and loved. She suggested they all light candles during our ceremony as an act of unity. We woke up the following days to tons and tons of photos of lit candles in our honor, it was SO SPECIAL. She hiked a mountain with us to get our ceremony spot and delivered a beautiful ceremony that left us both laughing and in tears. She balanced out the lightheartedness with depth and meaning. She told our story throughout the ceremony and we find that invaluable as we will look back on it for years to come. We left as friends having shared such an intimate experience together. We felt supported throughout the whole entire process. We are so grateful for who she is and what she does. THANK YOU LAUREN from the bottom of our hearts, you helped make our day one we'll never forget!!
Sent on 08/14/2020
Lauren Snead Wedding Officiant's reply:
Amanda & Jeff, thank you from the bottom of my heart for this touching and beautiful review. Knowing that you felt so seen and loved and celebrated along your wedding journey and on your special day fills me with joy!! I loved getting to know you both, and sharing so many moments of laughter and emotion with you. The experience from beginning to end was magical. You hold a very special place in my heart and I wish you a lifetime of happiness!! Love you both so much!
Lauren provided me with coaching services as I began my personal business and dream to become a wedding officiant. From the day we met during her free consultation she blew me away with her passion for life and the world of officiating. Lauren is a natural at empowering others to rock at being themselves and there is no doubt that I wouldn't be where I am if it weren't for her guidance, encouragement, and creative coaching style. Lauren is incredibly unique and valuable to this industry and you need her in your life!
