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When imagining the ideal venue for your dream wedding, which locations come to mind? A church imbued with your faith? A serene white sand beach? A lush garden or park immersed in nature?
While these locations are certainly among the most popular, the ultimate choice for many couples often depends on their unique circumstances. However, even with those factors in mind, most couples wouldn’t consider exchanging vows in a NASCAR pit stop, strolling down the condiment aisle at the local grocery store, or in front of a crowd of 50,000 strangers.
Yet, despite how improbable these scenarios might appear, the couples featured in this list dared to take a more unconventional route on their wedding day. Whether tying the knot in less than ten seconds, tweeting their “I do’s,” eloping at a rock concert, or even marrying a tree, here are ten weddings that defied the ordinary.
10. Ten-Second NASCAR Wedding
On August 8, 2023, Anheuser-Busch revealed a unique opportunity for couples aged 21 and over across the U.S. to marry at “NASCAR speed” through the Busch Light Pit Stop Wedding Contest, celebrating Kevin Harvick’s final race in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Tori Lindsay and Nick Brendel, passionate NASCAR enthusiasts who had also gotten engaged at the NASCAR Hall of Fame, were selected as the lucky winners of the contest. On October 15, 2023, during Kevin Harvick’s pit stop at the South Point 400 NASCAR Cup Series playoff race at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the couple exchanged their vows next to Harvick’s pit box, marking what has been called the “fastest wedding ever.”
For the ceremony, Lindsay wore a white NASCAR racing suit with a veil draped around her waist, carrying a bouquet of white roses adorned with Busch Light beer cans. Brendel, in contrast, wore a white button-down shirt, tie, and boutonniere beneath a NASCAR jacket and matching pants.
With actor Gerald Downey, the “Busch Guy,” serving as the officiant and the sound of roaring engines in the background, the couple exchanged their vows in front of around 80,000 “guests” in just under 10 seconds.
Celik, a social media editor for the news website ensonhaber.com, and his bride incorporated Twitter into their wedding ceremony on September 2, 2012, when Mustafa Kara, the mayor of Istanbul’s Uskudar district, officiated by sending a tweet asking if they took each other as husband and wife.
The couple then shared an iPad, each typing out their “I do’s” by tweeting “evet,” the Turkish word for “yes,” sending their vows into the digital universe. The witnesses also performed their duties via social media.
Though the couple demonstrated that just 140 characters were enough to express their everlasting love, the virtual ceremony ended with Kara handing them a marriage certificate, which they later signed in the traditional manner.
8. A Tree-Mendous Wedding for a Noble Cause
Karen Cooper, 60, from Fort Myers, Florida, learned that the city planned to cut down a century-old ficus tree that had long shaded and been a centerpiece of Snell Family Park. Cooper was determined to save the cherished tree—and was willing to go out on a limb to do so.
The tree boasts an 8,000-foot (2,438-meter) canopy extending into a neighboring lot, which was listed for $1 million. The tree quickly became the focus of a local dispute when, in 2017, Fort Myers city officials discussed its removal. The city’s public works department gave approval in December 2017, and in February 2018, the board debated spending $13,000 to cut the tree down and replace it with smaller trees.
In an effort to protect the century-old tree, Cooper organized a ceremony on March 24, 2018, where she wed the tree during a community event.
Cooper’s friend and maid of honor, Ann Cason, escorted Cooper and her ring bearer, a dog named Little Bear, down a makeshift aisle to stand before the tree. Around 80 neighborhood residents gathered to witness the waterfront wedding, where vows were read by the event’s DJ. Though no rings or priest were present, the community cheered as Cooper promised “to protect, preserve, and celebrate” the tree. The celebration featured flowers, music, a tree-themed wedding cake, and mimosas.
The “tree-mendous” ceremony was a triumph. On March 27, 2018, the Fort Myers Beautification Advisory Board decided to save the tree.
7. “Everlong” Love
Belinda Marie Ramos and Tony Rosales, a couple from Texas, credited the Foo Fighters’ hit song “Everlong” with igniting their romance. In fact, they recalled that although they were just friends at the time, the song stirred up a “rush of emotions” in Rosales, ultimately helping him realize he was in love with Ramos.
Rosales proposed on January 1, 2018, and the couple set their wedding date for May 4, 2019, as they shared a love for Star Wars.
However, after securing a venue, inviting guests, and even purchasing a $2,000 wedding dress, the couple decided to elope instead, choosing a ceremony during an upcoming Foo Fighters concert.
Through the concert’s event page, Ramos connected with Phoebe, an ordained officiant, who agreed to meet them during the show. On April 21, 2018, at the Starplex Pavilion in Dallas, Texas, the couple arrived and informed the venue staff of their wedding plans. Not only did the staff provide them with a setlist, but they also gave their officiant, Phoebe, a special pass to join them at their VIP seats when “Everlong” was played.
6. Oh, Thank Heaven for 7-Eleven
Myrtle Bond and Owen “Jack” Tate had been childhood friends and briefly dated during the 1980s. After losing touch for nearly a decade, fate intervened when Tate walked into a Richmond, Virginia, 7-Eleven at 3 am for a cup of coffee—and discovered Bond working as the cashier.
That chance meeting at 7-Eleven was all it took to reignite their romance, and after dating for a few months, Tate proposed marriage. However, his wedding idea was far from typical—he wanted to marry inside the same 7-Eleven where they had reunited. Although Bond was initially hesitant, she eventually agreed to the unconventional plan.
On December 14, 1996, Bond was escorted down an aisle made of cereal boxes, crackers, and candy by her manager, Pat Stutz, as Tate and Reverend Paul Richardson waited by the Big Gulp and Slurpee machines.
The convenience store continued operating as normal, with one customer fueling up their car and another coming in to buy lottery tickets and cigarettes while the couple exchanged vows in their 10-minute ceremony.
5. Wedding Bells and Sleigh Bells
Forty-two-year-old Eric Daniel, a videography teacher, part-time actor, and former Polk County, Florida, Sheriff’s deputy, met 40-year-old Joy Richter, a registered nurse, through a dating app after years of unsuccessful attempts at love.
After their first meeting in 2021, Daniel knew instantly that Richter was the one he was meant to marry. In May 2022, he popped the question following a Kane Brown concert in Tampa, Florida.
Though they weren’t fans of the spotlight, Daniel and Richter initially planned a quiet, private elopement in either Savannah, Georgia, or Charleston, South Carolina. However, their plans took a turn when their wedding officiant, Pastor Crystal Porter, informed them about a contest offering a free wedding ceremony during Lakeland’s 41st annual Christmas Parade.
The couple won the contest, and on December 1, 2022, Daniel and Richter found themselves atop a Christmas parade float with a preacher, friends, and family. As the float passed the judges' stand, they were declared husband and wife. Ironically, the couple who originally planned to elope ended up married in front of an estimated 50,000 people who gathered for the annual event.
4. Here Comes the Bride, Down the Condiment Aisle
On August 3, 2021, Brenda Williams went to the Fry’s Food and Drug store in Casa Grande, Arizona, looking for Miracle Whip. While searching aisle 8 for the sandwich spread, she unexpectedly found her future husband.
Dennis Delgado, who was picking up olive oil mayonnaise, approached Williams and remarked, “You know the best thing about wearing a mask? You can walk by people not wearing one and cuss them out under your breath; they won’t hear a word you say.” This playful exchange sparked a 30-minute conversation, and they eventually swapped phone numbers.
Williams had lost her husband of 30 years to prostate cancer two years earlier, and Delgado had recently lost his wife of 45 years. Despite the pain they both carried, Delgado joined Williams at church the following Sunday, and over time, they helped mend each other's hearts.
Then, in April 2022, Delgado proposed to Williams right in the spot where they first met.
On November 19, 2022, 72-year-old Williams walked down the condiment aisle once more, but this time to marry. She hid behind the aisle and then proceeded down aisle 8, where 78-year-old Delgado awaited his bride, as the wedding march played over the store’s speakers. Family, friends, and shoppers gathered to witness the ceremony, and Fry’s staff provided custom floral arrangements, including Miracle Whip and mayonnaise.
Miracle Whip learned of the couple’s story roughly a week after their wedding and offered to gift them a honeymoon.
3. Drive-Thru, Say “I Do”
Stephanie Garcia and Phil Hammond, from Cambridge, Ontario, crossed paths in 2007 while working as crew members at McDonald’s. Over the next 14 years, their relationship flourished as they had four children together, one of whom was even named Little Mac as a nod to the McDonald’s Big Mac.
Though the couple always intended to marry, their plans were delayed by their conflicting work hours at McDonald’s, the responsibilities of raising four kids, and, eventually, the pandemic.
When McDonald’s announced a “Drive-thru Say I Do” contest, offering couples a chance to marry beneath the Golden Arches, Garcia jumped at the opportunity and was chosen as a winner.
On August 24, 2021, the couple drove their Mustang to the first drive-thru window of a McDonald’s in Cambridge, where they exchanged vows and were declared husband and wife as family and friends cheered from the parking lot. They then headed to the outdoor patio to enjoy their first meal as newlyweds—Stephanie with a 10-piece chicken nugget meal, and Phil with a Big Mac and fries.
2. Making the Most of the Last Day of School
After 15 years of dating, 56-year-old Jeff Vest, a social studies teacher at Lawrence North High School in Indianapolis, Indiana, and 49-year-old Kari Bordner, a guidance counselor at the same school, decided it was time to get married.
Rather than going all out or spending excessively, the couple chose a simple, last-minute “no frills” wedding. In fact, they sent out online invitations on the evening of May 28, 2019, for a ceremony to take place the very next day.
On May 29, 2019, they exchanged vows at the center of the school’s gymnasium. This was not only their wedding day but also the last day of school and the final day of Vest’s career due to his early retirement. It was a day filled with many celebrations.
1. Ten-Year-Old with Cancer Gets Her Dream Wedding
Ten-year-old Emma Edwards from Walnut Cove, North Carolina, had a dream to become a mother, start a family, and marry her childhood love, Daniel Marshall Christopher Williams Jr., known as DJ. The young pair even tried to hold their wedding ceremony at their elementary school, but their teacher shut it down.
However, Edwards’s dream of marriage and motherhood grew uncertain after she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a fast-progressing condition in which white blood cells are present in the bone marrow, in April 2022.
Edwards underwent treatment for her leukemia for nearly a year, and her parents, Alina and Aaron Edwards, kept their hope alive for her recovery. But in June 2023, doctors told them the illness was incurable.
It was then that DJ and his mother proposed that the young couple should marry and express their love for each other while there was still time. On June 29, 2023, a small ceremony took place in Edwards’s grandmother’s garden, with around 100 people in attendance.
Sadly, Edwards passed away on July 11, 2023, just 12 days after their wedding ceremony.
