When you think about your wedding officiant, what kind of person comes to mind? We thought: an older person, monotonously reciting a one-way-fits all script. That is until we met Shawn Miller of Young, Hip & Married, an awesome alternative for your wedding ceremony. You can check out the website here or connect on facebook.

We encountered Shawn at a wedding convention where he was one of the guest speakers. He spoke so passionately about his work that we knew we had to meet him for an interview! Thank you Shawn for taking the time!

A lot of people (including ourselves until recently) don’t know a lot about officiants. How come they mostly are, eh, older people?

Often you’ll see a wedding performed by a JP (Justice of the Peace), who are mostly retired people, regulated by the government.

Where can Young, Hip & Married  make a difference for couples?

We want couples to have a unique ceremony that truly represents them and what they find most important.

That’s why we help them, not only to customize their ceremony, but also to find the best matching officiant (so far we have 14 officiants). Our clients always get to sit down and chat with them first, before they pay their deposit.

Next it becomes a process of co-creation.

What made you become an officiant?

My background is in marriage and relationship coaching. It’s very important for me to have a conversation about marriage. I don’t just want to marry a couple, I want them to stay together and have a happy lifelong marriage. One of the quotes you can read on our site is “I want a marriage more beautiful than my wedding“. Not only do we talk about marriage and create a very personal ceremony, we are also a resource for couples that they can rely on throughout their marriage.

J&T: This really struck a cord with us. We truly believe in working at our marriage and love that Young, Hip and Married offers marriage coaching!

Photo courtesy of Young Hip & Married

Vancouver has so many different religions and cultures, how do you deal with that?

We do extensive research when it comes to cultural traditions and of course we talk about this with our couples. We make sure to respect their traditions, but don’t forget to add a personal touch.

So far our services come in English, German, French, Spanish and we also work together with Cantonese and Mandarin Translators.

 Is there a wedding you’ll never forget?

There are so many! One that comes to mind is a Burning Man themed wedding. All the guest were dressed in their Burning Man costumes. The bride and groom danced their vows to each other and then all the guest(s) joined in the dance.

What would be your advice for brides looking for an officiant?

It’s crucial that you trust them, so you can relax on your big day. Make sure you have a good rapport with whomever runs your ceremony.

We have worked with Shawn and the team on so many weddings since this interview! We still highly recommend the team. 🙂

Are you excited to get started? Start your elopement planning here or find more general wedding planning tips here.