Mr.
& Luca Kallot-Bucken
Mrs.
Kathleen Kallot-Bucken
Those Who Walk With Us
The Wedding Party
The Wedding Party
Those Who Walk With Us
A Christian garden wedding is never a private affair. The rite is carried by a circle of witnesses — the Ninong and Ninang, the secondary sponsors who hold the candle, the veil, and the cord, the bearers of ring and Word and coin, the family who walks the bride down the aisle, and the friends paired in procession. Each one stands for something. Each one is named here on purpose.
This page gathers the two sides of our Filipino-Kenyan household — the family Zoë was raised in, the family George was raised in, and the friends who became family in between. Below — every person who walks the aisle with us, and what their walk means.
Ninong & Ninang
Principal Sponsors
In Filipino tradition, the Ninong and Ninang are the couple's primary witnesses and spiritual guardians — usually married couples whose own union is worthy of emulation. They are not only witnesses to the day; they take on a lifelong role as advisors, intercessors, and second parents to the marriage.
Mr.
& Anthony Villanueva
Mrs.
Cecillia Villanueva
Three Symbolic Rites
Secondary Sponsors
Three trusted couples and close family carry the three symbolic items of the rite — the candles, the veil, and the cord. Each is a quiet, weighted moment of the ceremony, and each pair stands as a living blessing over the union.
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The Candle
Candle Sponsors
The candle sponsors light two tapers flanking the altar at the start of the rite, then together light a single unity candle. The flame is the light of Christ joining two lives into one household.
Mr.
Antonio R. Miclat Jr.
Mrs.
Marie M. Artates
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The Veil
Veil Sponsors
The veil sponsors drape a single white veil over the shoulders of the bride and the groom, connecting them in one cloth. The veil signifies being clothed as one — in purity, in devotion, and in shared covering before God.
Mr.
Roswell M. Artates
Ms.
Lynn M. Gichuru
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The Cord
Cord (Yugal) Sponsors
The cord sponsors lay a figure-eight cord — the yugal — over the heads of the kneeling couple. The infinity loop binds the two as one and signifies an unbreakable, lifelong union.
Mr.
Xavier Vincent M. Artates
Ms.
Maureen N. Gichuru
The Three Bearers
Bearers
Three small processions inside the larger one. A cushion of rings, a Bible held up like a lamp, a velvet purse of thirteen coins — each carried by one of the three bearers, and each placed at the altar as a sign of what this household will be built on: fidelity, the Word, and shared provision.
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The Ring Ring Bearer
The ring bearer carries the wedding rings on a cushion to the altar. Exchanged before God, the rings are the outward sign of a fidelity that has no beginning and no end.
Mr.
Brighton G. Kituku
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The Word Bible Bearer
The bible bearer presents the Word to be received by the couple as the foundation of their home. Scripture is the lamp at their feet — the standard by which they will navigate their marriage.
Ms.
Suwon (Jesse) Jun
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The Arrhae Coin Bearer
The coin bearer carries the thirteen arrhae — twelve coins for the months of the year, and one for the poor. The groom gives them to the bride as a sign of his commitment to her welfare and their shared stewardship of provision.
Ms.
Marie Kamau
Petals on the Path
Flower Girl
The flower girl scatters petals along the bride's path, scenting and beautifying the way to the altar. Her steps trace the joy walking ahead of the vow.
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Walking Ahead of the Vow Ms.
Amara Lesaca-Petil
Closest at the Altar
The Bridal Court
The two who stand the closest. The best man, steady at the groom's right hand; the maids of honor, steady at the bride's. They hold the rings and the bouquet, but more than that, they hold the day itself together.
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Beside the Groom Best Man
The best man stands beside the groom — both as witness to the vow and as the friend who will keep him accountable to it long after the ceremony has ended.
Mr.
Scott I. Muriuki
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Beside the Bride Maids of Honor
The bride's closest two — they steady the dress, the bouquet, the rings, and the signing. They are her witnesses and her steadying hand on the longest, most luminous walk of her life.
Ms.
Gelyn Garcia Dullas
Ms.
Stefani Collins
Paired in Procession
Groomsmen & Bridesmaids
The couple's community walking with them — paired in procession, paired in witness, paired in joy. They are the friends who will carry this marriage in their prayers and at their tables for the years to come.
Mr.
& Daryll Yeroen M. Cayetano
Ms.
Areej Dianne Maniago
Mr.
& Ervin Ashley B. Rico
Ms.
Fancy Chepkoech
Mr.
& Christian B. Susa
Ms.
Geraldine Marie M. Artates
Mr.
& Randell Adolph Sanchez
Ms.
Jackline Jepnetich
Extending the Circle
And Our Additional Bridesmaids
Beloved friends and family who stand with the bride — extending the circle of witness around her on the day, and the circle of friendship around the couple in the years that follow.
Ms.
Caroline Faye R. Paneda
Ms.
Mary Joy M. Gavilan
Ms.
Faith Marie B. Rico
The Lineage
Family
Before the vow, the families enter — grandparents, parents, the ones who taught us how to love. They are not just guests at the wedding; they are the soil this marriage grows out of.
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The Bride's Side
Grandparents of the Bride
The bride's grandparents enter ahead of her, carrying the weight of generations into the room. Their presence is the blessing of a lineage that has prayed this day into being.
Mr.
Antonio A. Miclat Sr.
Mrs.
Julieta R. Miclat
Mrs.
Aurea Cayetano
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Mother of the Bride
Parent of the Bride
Mrs. Aline M. Olson walks her daughter down the aisle — the final, quiet handing-over of the girl she raised into the woman about to take a vow.
Mrs.
Aline M. Olson
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The Groom's Side
Parents of the Groom
The groom's parents stand for him as he stands at the altar — Rt. Rev. Moses Gichuru Maina and Mrs. Lanet Wanjiru Gichuru — anchoring him in the lineage that taught him how to love.
Rt. Rev.
Moses Gichuru Maina
Mrs.
Lanet Wanjiru Gichuru
Six Symbolic Rites
What Will Happen at the Altar
The rites are the heart of the ceremony — six small acts inside the larger one, each blending Filipino tradition with our shared Christian faith. They are short, quiet, and deliberate. Here they are in plain language, so that what you witness from your seat is what we mean when we kneel.
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The Bible Ceremony
The Word is presented and received as the foundation of the household — the lamp at the feet of every decision made hereafter.
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The Coin (Arrhae) Ceremony
Thirteen coins — twelve for the months of the year and one for the poor — pass from groom to bride as the pledge of shared provision and stewardship.
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The Washing of the Feet
Rooted in John 13:14–15, a new addition to the rite. A sign of mutual servanthood — that the highest posture in marriage is the lower one.
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The Veil Ceremony
A single white veil drapes the shoulders of bride and groom together. One cloth, one covering, one household before God.
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The Cord (Yugal) Ceremony
A figure-eight cord — the yugal — is laid over the kneeling couple. The infinity loop names the binding: unbreakable, lifelong, one.
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The Candle Ceremony
Two tapers, lit on either side of the altar, are brought together to light a single unity candle. One light, drawn from two flames.