Gabrielle Giffords and Mark Kelly didn't opt for the ultimate fairy-tale wedding, with a string quartet, strolling violinists and tuxedo-clad waiters serving endless champagne and caviar to the enviable who's-who list of guests, including political dignitaries and the crème of Arizona's social elite.
Instead, the congresswoman and her astronaut fiance said "I do" Saturday evening beneath near cloudless sky on a farm in Amado, where the roughly 300 guests sat in chairs on a lawn with a billowing tent as their cover.
Giffords and Kelly were married in a way that suited their personalities and their politics, surrounded by nature and family.
It is Giffords' first marriage, Kelly's second. His twin brother was his best man; her sister headed the bride's party.
One of the Tucson area's most notable weddings of the year also was one of its most environmentally conscious. Guests ate with forks and plates made of sugar cane, biodegradable within a couple of months in a landfill. And everything that could be borrowed or reused was, from the kiddush cup used in the traditional Jewish wedding ceremony, to the homemade flower bouquets, to the second-hand wedding dress.
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Their trip to the altar comes in between a trip to the nation's Capitol and a trip to outer space: the romantic journey of a congresswoman and an astronaut.
– Cathalena E. Burch
A congresswoman bride. An astronaut groom.
A guest list that reads like the "Who's Who" among state and national politicians and business people.
A former Clinton cabinet member gave the final blessings.
And the Jewish chuppah was escorted in by a mariachi band.
The wedding of Gabrielle Giffords and Mark Kelly on Saturday will go down as one of the hottest invites of 2007.
The attendants: Her wedding party included Kelly's daughters, Claire and Claudia; her sister Melissa; Arizona state Rep. Linda Lopez; state Sen. Elaine Richardson; Cathy Nichols, daughter of the late Sen. Andy Nichols; and Raoul Erickson. The groom's party included best man Scott Kelly, Mark's twin brother and a fellow astronaut; astronauts Piers Sellers and Mike Fossum; pilot Mark Baden; and NASA scientist Julie Payette.
Unusual aspect about the attendants: Did you notice each side had a member of the opposite sex? She has friend Erickson; he has longtime friend Payette.
Ring bearer: Payette's son, Larier Flynn.
Flower girl: Mark Kelly's niece Charlotte Kelly.
The wedding gown: A borrowed Vera Wang.
What the groom wore: His Navy formal.
Who performed the wedding: Congregation Chaverim Rabbi Stephanie Aaron.
The location: About 35 miles south of Tucson on the lawn of the Agua Linda Farm in Amado, a family farm run by Stewart and Laurel Loew. Guests were seated in chairs on the lawn, and the reception was held in the courtyard of the main house, a 1965 Joessler hacienda that anchors the property. The ceremony was perform-ed beneath the chuppah , framed by a gnarled, leafy mesquite tree and a brick pool house. Elephant Head, the distinctive rock jutting out of the Santa Rita Mountains, served as a backdrop. For one very brief moment, the skies opened and rained on the ceremony. That was very good luck, Aaron said.
The blessing: Given by Robert Reich, President Clinton's secretary of labor and a good friend of Giffords.
The vows: Traditional Jewish ceremony.
The rings: His is a titanium wedding band, hers is a wide gold band studded with lapis. Her engagement ring is a diamond solitaire.
The food: Regional Mexican, right down to a person making homemade tortillas, and steak and potatoes.
The wedding planner: Longtime Giffords family friend and Tucson event planner Suzy Gershman.
How green is her wedding: Giffords and Gershman dubbed this a "low-carbon-footprint" wedding — one that emphasized Giffords' and Kelly's environmental values. The celebration featured serving dishes and a kiddush cup borrowed from family, biodegradable plates and utensils used at the reception and homemade floral arrangements.
