Local Church Invites Same-Sex Couples to Marry on July 4

July 2, 2015 by Amy Pennza

For Americans, Indepen-dence Day is a time of celebration.

This July 4, East Shore Unitarian Universalist Church in Kirtland is giving same-sex couples an extra reason to celebrate.

From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Rev. Denis Letourneau will perform marriage ceremonies for all loving couples, free of charge, in honor of the Freedom to Marry victory announced earlier this week in the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges.

East Shore joins thousands of other Unitarian Universalist churches across Ohio that will be performing wedding ceremonies July 4.

“It’s a celebration and support for those who wanted to marry for so long,” Dorothy Lemmey, a long-time East Shore congregation member from Chardon, told the Geauga County Maple Leaf.

East Shore has a long history of supporting equal rights for those in the LGBTQ community. Church members opted 13 years ago to become a Wel-coming Congregation, a designation the Unitarian Universal-ist Association describes as “a program to help us learn how to undo homophobia . . . in our hearts and minds, our congregations and our communities.”

“Our church has been supportive (of the LGBTQ community) for a long, long time,” Lemmey said.

The groundbreaking June 26 Supreme Court decision has Ohio roots. James Obergefell and John Arthur, a same-sex couple from Cincinnati, filed a lawsuit when their Ohio county refused their request to list Obergefell as surviving spouse on Arthur’s death certificate.

The couple were legally married in Maryland in 2013, in a ceremony performed on an airplane tarmac. Because Ohio did not recognize same-sex marriage at the time of the request — Ohio voters having amended the state constitution in 2004 to prohibit gay marriges from being “valid or recognized by” the Buckeye state — the state argued that Obergefell was not a surviving spouse.

The U.S. Supreme Court overturned a Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals decision that held Ohio’s ban on gay marriage did not violate the U.S. Constitution. By reversing the lower court’s decision, the Court ruled 5-4 that same-sex marriage is a right across all states and U.S. territories.

Ohio is now one of 13 holdout states that must join the rest of the country in recognizing a same-sex couple’s right to marry.

Writing for the majority, Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote, “No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family. In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were.”

This is exactly the sentiment members at East Shore wish to celebrate this weekend.

“The Unitarian Universalist Church welcomes everyone,” Lemmey said.

Couples who wish to marry must first obtain a marriage license. Residents in Geauga and Lake counties can get their license from the Geauga County Probate Court, in Chardon, or the Lake County Probate Court, in Painesville.

East Shore asks that interested couples register ahead of time to allow the church to get an accurate headcount. Couples can register by contacting the church office at 440-256-3400, through the church’s website at www.eastshore.org or by leaving a message on the church’s Facebook page.