More than 300 couples stood under darkening skies in Russellville, Arkansas, to exchange their vows during the height of the total solar eclipse Monday.
The mass wedding was part of a larger, three-day event dubbed “Total Eclipse of the Heart.” For just $100, couples received entry to the festival and a wedding ceremony, which included the officiant, a toast and even a wedding cake. All the couples needed to bring to the wedding was a marriage license and their love for one another.
With more than four minutes in eclipse totality, Russellville became the go-to destination for many couples who had other plans to marry on eclipse day.
Carlotta Cox and Matthew Holloway drove to Arkansas from Tennessee to get married instead of heading up to New England.
“Our original destination was Maine,” the couple told 4029 TV News. “The totality there is like two minutes, and then we were looking for something where the totality was longer.”
Keegan Wright heard about the wedding event in Arkansas and thought it would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to share with his fiancée Courtney Rougeau. Wright told “Good Morning America” his bride-to-be wasn’t sure at first about the idea.
“She was wanting something a little more traditional,” he told “GMA.” “It took a while but I finally convinced her to get married [during] the eclipse.”
It turned out to be a wonderful decision. Rougeau and Wright witnessed the ring of light around the moon as eclipse totality happened shortly after their vows. The bride thought the view was “amazing.”
“This is breathtaking. It’s nothing like I’ve ever seen before,” she told “GMA.” “I know I keep using that word [amazing] but there’s nothing else that describes it. Like, the happiest I’ve ever been and to experience this with him. It’s really incredible.”
This story was originally published on Simplemost.
