Sat 18 Sep 2010 In: Weddings and Civil Unions View at Wayback View at NDHA
"It had been a topic of conversation quite early on in the relationship. There was no proposal moment - we woke up one morning and both decided - let's do it, let's get married." Kiwi Kelly Sinclair and Brazil native Marjorie Cristine are the definition of young, whirlwind love. The 21-year-olds met, fell madly for each other, and just a few months later they are married. It was pretty much 'the Candy Bar romance' – Kelly was working behind the bar during the K' Rd lesbian venue's launch weekend in April, when she spied Marjorie in the DJ booth. "I guess you could say for me it was love at first sight, but I was too shy to talk to her. The following weekend I introduced myself and after our first kiss we were inseparable." Kelly can't remember the exact moment they fell in love. "It feels as though I have always loved her, I think that's when you know it's true love - but I remember Marjorie teaching me how to say I love you in Portuguese, and I haven't stopped saying it since." "She loves me unconditionally; she is proud of us and brings out the best in me." The decision to get married was simple. "It had been a topic of conversation quite early on in the relationship. There was no proposal moment - we woke up one morning and both decided - let's do it, let's get married." Age is nothing but a number to the couple, "We are both 21, I have never thought about our age and if we were too young. I think when you find that person - your soulmate then nothing else matters," Kelly says. Kelly Sinclair and Marjorie Cristine tied the knot in Queenstown on Wednesday 8th of September. Kelly shares the following about the wedding day: There was a group of 12 of us who all flew down to Queenstown for the wedding and Gay Ski Week was also on - so there were a few other friends already down there. We all arrived on the Sunday and the first two days in Queenstown we had horrible weather. We planned to have the wedding at Queenstown Gardens - but had no plan B for bad weather. On the day of the wedding we awoke to clear blue sky and a warm sunshine - me and Marjorie woke everyone up exceptionally early like little kids on a Christmas morning. From there on in it was all go - picking up flowers, chairs, tables, getting my hair and makeup done, drinking champagne - the day was beautiful without the help and support of all our friends our wedding day would not have happened. During the ceremony there were a lot of tears, it was quite emotional to share this special moment with our close friends - who had been there from the day that Marjorie and I met. We had a Civil Unionist Phillipa complete our ceremony - she was lovely and has performed civil unions for years. After the ceremony we all went down to The Bath House which is at the bottom of the Gardens on the lake front. We had drinks and nibbles and our amazing cake which was made by "CHOCs" from The Chocolate Cake Company. It was a beautiful unforgettable day with many precious memories I will carry forever. It brought us all together because we are family, built on the relationships we already had. My best friend Emily Patrick gave me away - words can't explain how much I appreciated and loved having them all there - that they all flew down for the wedding. I think that day will be cherished by all forever. Marjorie and I would like to thank everyone from the bottom of our hearts. Now the happy couple are busily planning for the future. Kelly has an application in to join the police force and will temporarily move to Wellington to go to Police College, but will return to Auckland after. Marjorie has become the popular and in demand lesbian DJ on the K' Rd circuit, an area in which Kelly believes her wife will continue to succeed. The couple are planning a trip to Brazil in March, for Kelly's birthday and Carnival. Kelly says their civil union had the same meaning and significance as any marriage. "We have committed ourselves to a life long journey together. I believe that New Zealand is a very fortunate country in that we can have civil unions - a guest at our wedding was proud to be a part of the day and left him speechless - he said that it was beautiful and that years ago this could never happen." If you would like to share your civil union story on GayNZ.com, email gaynz@woosh.co.nz Jacqui Stanford - 18th September 2010