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Reverend Gary Gudzik

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A pop-up wedding chapel will be at Harborfront Park in Port Jefferson June 26, the third anniversary of the Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage in the United States. Stock photo

By Anthony Petriello

Wedding bells will be in the air at a Port Jeff park to commemorate a groundbreaking day in American history.

Reverend Gary Gudzik officiates a wedding. Photo from Gudzik

Reverend Gary Gudzik of the Chapel of St. Valentine and Port Jefferson Village Mayor Margot Garant will be hosting a marriage event at Harborfront Park in Port Jeff June 26 from 4 to 8 p.m. The date was chosen to honor the third anniversary of the Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage in all 50 states, although the event will be open to all interested couples. Gudzik will be officiating and Garant will be co-officiating the ceremonies for any couples that choose to attend.

“It was a no brainer,” Garant said of her interest in participating. “I feel like we need some good news in this world and Port Jefferson is a place where everyone can come and celebrate.”

The event will feature individual ceremonies by appointment as well as group vow renewals. All ceremonies will be open to the public.

Gudzik is an ordained Christian minister who grew up in Port Jefferson and graduated from Earl L. Vandermeulen High School in 1989. He is the vicar, or bishop’s deputy, of the Chapel of St. Valentine in Mount Sinai. He was ordained in 2014 and has officiated nearly 100 ceremonies.

The Chapel of St. Valentine is LGBTQ friendly “because we believe that ALL people have the right to marry the person they love. Period,” according to its website.

“I love being a part of the happiest day in someone’s life,” Gudzik said. “It’s a special moment when you can pronounce two people married.”

“I feel like we need some good news in this world and Port Jefferson is a place where everyone can come and celebrate.”

— Margot Garant

The 2015 decision produced strong reactions on both sides of the ideological spectrum.

“No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family,” Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote on the historic decision. “In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were . . . It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their plea is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfillment for themselves. . . . They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right.”

The decision was passed in a 5-4 ruling, and established the rights of same sex couples in the United States, though many states had passed laws prior to 2015.

Anyone who is interested in reserving an individual ceremony can contact Gudzik at 631-406-9757, or visit www.chapelofsaintvalentine.org, though they do anticipate to be able to accommodate walk-ups as well.