OCEAN CITY – Records are expected to be broken on “12-12-12” in Ocean City as couples will gather to be married or renew their vowels at a summer get away in the middle of winter.
To celebrate her 12th year of performing weddings on the beach, Pastor Mary Mazzulo is hosting a 12-12-12 Wedding and Vow Renewal Event in Ocean City with all couples saying “I do” at exactly 12:12 p.m. Mazzulo and her husband, Roger, were married in Las Vegas and while on a trip to Bermuda to see their friends get married she quickly realized that there are slim pickings for locations to have a quick and easy wedding on the East Coast.
‘The second we got home I left my suitcases at the front door I was so excited about it all the way from Bermuda,” Mazzulo said.
In 1998, Mazzulo opened a chapel on the plaza in downtown Salisbury but it wasn’t long before the she realized again that couples weren’t looking to get married in a chapel when they come to the area but rather the beach.
By 2000, the chapel in Salisbury was shut down and the business, Ocean City Weddings, was born. In the same year, Mazzullo was ordained to be a pastor so that she could put her own personal touch on the wedding ceremony.
“I get to actually look at the couple in their face, talk to them and see their reactions … it’s fun, we have a good time,” she said.
On a trip to Las Vegas on Oct. 10, 2010, Mazzullo quickly realized how busy the city was due to the iconic date and the number of couples there to be married and that is when she got an idea.
While researching iconic dates Mazzullo came across 12-12-12, which is the titled the luckiest day of the year and a date that comes once every 1,000 years.
“So if I was ever going to do it, it had to be this year,” she said.
Mazzulo didn’t even realize how significant the date actually was until after she started planning the event because this will be her 12th year conducting weddings.
“That was just a happy coincidence,” she said.
The number of wedding ceremonies Mazzulo has conducted is in the process of being added up but she estimated at least 1,500-plus in the past 12 years.
At first, Mazzulo thought of having just 12 couples participate in the 12-12-12 wedding ceremony but through the advice of a friend she decided to go bigger. She thought of setting a goal to have 606 couples, which would total 2,012 people but in the end she set a more realistic goal of having 450 couples participate.
Mazullo and Seacrets Nite Club and Restaurant will be hosting the 12-12-12 Wedding and Vow Renewal. The ceremony is planned to take place on the beach at Seacrets with the reception to continue on the sand in the Tiki Lounge and Nite Club.
There will be 12 different entertainment selections provided by Gig Masters and WedPics is premiering brand new technology that allows all couples to post photos from their phones immediately to one location, and family and friends can interact with them in real time. Seacrets will have its webcams on all day so friends and family can also enjoy the festivities in real-time from their computers. Additionally, couples can participate if they can’t make the trip. Photographers will be on the sand and in the Nite Club and Tiki Bar, capturing photos all day.
The event will also include a parade of brides and grooms; a reception of all brides and grooms; a trash the gown event and photos uploaded in one day, all to set records.
This all-inclusive ceremony/reception and record-setting event is priced at $350 per couple.
During this time Ocean City’s famous Winterfest of Lights will be taking place where the couples can enjoy a train ride through a winter wonderland. Horse and carriage rides will also be offered in downtown Ocean City and Berlin.
For more information, visit www.12-12-2012weddings.com. Registrations must be completed by Nov. 21.