Soon-to-Be Married Couple Require Their 32 Guests to Be Fully Vaccinated before Their Wedding

A couple is not taking chances when it comes to COVID-19 and is requiring their guests to bring with them a vaccination certificate as proof. No Vaccine-No cake!

Keri Barnett-Howell and fiancé Will Grosswendt have stated categorically that they will require their wedding guests and staff to get vaccinated for COVID-19 ahead of their wedding in a YouTube video posted June 10.

The couple who met in 2014 through a dating site had been together for six years when Grosswendt proposed on New Year's Eve of 2020. They initially had the wedding date set for 2022, but with the vaccines now available, they settled for this August this year.

The couple says they will require proof that their 32 guests have indeed been vaccinated as they want a mask-free wedding, calling it a hybrid COVID-normal wedding. They say asking for proof is not ideal but it’s for everyone’s safety.

They say that most of their guests are on board with providing proof of vaccination but most of the wedding staff is not, and some have already pulled out. Speaking to KING 5, Grosswendt said:

“I might be able to trust my friends but are friends of Keri's going to trust my friends? They don't know them.”

The topic of the vaccine has brought a division with some supporting it while others adamantly reject it. Following the release of the video, people have come out to accuse the couple of imposing their demands on other people that may not be on the same page.

The video’s comment section was awash with comments saying that not everyone was for the vaccine and people that did not want to be vaccinated would have to choose between attending the wedding and getting vaccinated.

A riled-up commenter asked the couple why they got vaccinated in the first place, if they could not interact with people that have not been vaccinated, saying he did not understand what the vaccine was meant for if it did not protect them from the virus.

While many criticized the decision, some supported the couple saying it was their wedding and they should do what best suits them. He said that there was nothing wrong with what they were asking. Adding to that he said:

“They might be protecting someone near and dear to them such as a grandparent.”

While the Seattle couple is locking out people from their wedding, Army Major Jose Perez and Heather Hathaway Miranda had to postpone their wedding due to the COVID-19 outbreak, saying they have lost loved ones to the virus.

The couple was finally able to exchange their nuptials in a lovely ceremony in front of their family and friends. They are however saddened by the fact that they had to remove some names from the invites list after they lost them to the deadly virus.

Josh and his bride-to-be Noelle Asmus are facing the same predicament as they have had to postpone their wedding twice, due to COVID-19 restrictions. The couple was initially planning to wed in July 2020.

When the pandemic hit, they moved it to December, which they say they had to move once again. They hope the new dates will be in their favor and plan on inviting only close friends and family. The third time's truly a charm.