The ceremony and reception took place in East Haddam, CT. This is the home of Harold "Fritz" Moritz, Thea's brother, and his wife, Sheila Gleason. It is located at 15 Geoffrey Road in a remote section of town, approximately 15 minutes east of the Connecticut River and the Goodspeed Opera House.
East Haddam is approximately 45 minutes southeast of Middletown, CT, which is in the center of the small state of Connecticut, and about an hour northeast of New Haven, which is on the shore. If you have never been to Connecticut before, see our sampling of local attractions.
We chose this site because it offers nice outdoor setting for a little more casual reception. A tent was set up behind the long ranch-style house. There's plenty of space for parking in the front of the old horse paddock area and along the driveway.
The Rev. Paige L. Besse-Rankin, pastor of the Woodmont United Church of Christ (Congregational) officiated. She is the current minister of the church Thea grew up in, located in Milford, CT. Rev. Paige has been at WUCC for two years and has met with Thea and Greg several times to prepare for their marriage and plan the details of the ceremony.
Thea's long-time friend since childhood, Lisa Mittleman Randall, served as the female witness, and Harold "Fritz" Moritz stood up for Greg. Amanda Moritz, Thea's niece, was the flowergirl. Our friends, Marcia Burel and Ann DeMatteo read from the Bible during the ceremony.
We had a New England clambake, catered by Captain John's of Norwalk, CT. Folks had a choice of lobster, chicken or steak. The tent, tables and chairs were provided by Events by Superior, located in Plantsville, CT. DJ entertainment was provided by Tom Shields of Local Motion (seen in this photo link with Thea and her friend Marcia). The colors were ivory, red and gold.
After spending Sunday with their families, Greg and Thea flew in their plane to Nantucket, MA, on the next morning (Labor Day). A favorite flying destination of the couple, they stayed at the Beachside. The flight was hampered by some lingering early morning fog which forced the couple to land in Groton and wait for the skies to clear up a little. Finally, by noon, the weather improved and in 45 minutes they landed with clear skies in Nantucket.
They brought their own bikes on the plane and spent a day riding from the main part of town to Siasconset ('Sconset). They also ate at some great restaurants including "The Brotherhood of Thieves." They spent a somewhat cloudy day on a bus tour of the island which included the homes of Massachusettes Senator Kerry and fashio designer Tommy Hilfiger. A very informative and interesting time was at the Nantucket Whaling Museum. It's hard to imagine the days when these sailors would sail off for years to the Indian Ocean in search of sperm whales. The tour guide gave a very realistic and descriptive details of what it was like to hunt and carve up a whale so people can have light.
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