“It Takes a Village”

What led you to have a Baby Welcoming Ceremony?

Genna and Vince created a Baby Welcoming ceremony to celebrate the arrival of their son,
Declan in a very special way. They wanted to acknowledge the community that would support
and gather around their son and to celebrate with their immediate and extended family and
friends in a personalized, and meaningful way. This was especially important since they were
living in a different city than their family. As the couple had a miscarriage a year before, this
ceremony was a moment to reflect, heal and come together in celebration of this blessing they
now have.
As they selected a Life-Cycle Celebrant to perform their wedding ceremony, they wanted to
continue this tradition to acknowledge a very important life milestone. As stated by Genna,
“Having Nicole only added to our ‘It takes’ a village’ theme, and she is part of our story and our
village. We are grateful to have been able to create another personalized, intimate ceremony
and celebration for our son and this new step and transition in our lives: becoming parents.

Family Handfasting Ritual, Photograph by Josh Sauer

What made your Ceremony special?

One of the themes that was central to this ceremony was the notion that, “It takes a Village to
raise a child.” It was therefore critical that rituals reflected the importance of all generations and
that all honored guests had a role to play within the ceremony. This role would be symbolic to
the integral role they would each play in Declan’s life. This was especially important as the
couple was married during the height of the pandemic and was now able to celebrate more fully
with their community.

Secondly, the selection of music added a personalized authenticity to the ceremony. Music has
the power to stir the soul. Music heals, it empowers, it is magical. As the notion of ‘gathering’ is
a vital component to the family, each musical underscoring was intentionally selected. Also,
selections of the music were composed by Genna’s great grandmother, other pieces were
selected from the couple’s wedding ceremony and family lullabies were also meaningfully
incorporated within the ceremony. All of which were played by the first-born grandson of the
family, the couple’s nephew, Nicolas.
Moreover, the handfasting cord that symbolically represented the couple’s commitment to one
another during their wedding ceremony was beautifully integrated into the Baby Welcoming
Ceremony. Through a Family Handfasting Ritual, guide parents were carefully selected to add
an additional knot to the cords, infusing the handfasting cords with love, and acknowledging the
establishment of the family unit.

Family Handfasting Cords, Photograph by Josh Sauer

What was the Highlight of the Ceremony?

Both Genna and Vince envisioned a ceremony that would encompass togetherness, family,
support and love. As stated by the couple, “It was important to us to have our family come
together and to acknowledge the role family plays in a child’s life. We are close with our
families, and we want that for our son.”
The connection between generations was therefore paramount to Genna and Vince. They
would invite their family and friends to be called upon during the ceremony to stand, generation
by generation to acknowledge the pivotal role they would each play in the child’s life. Wise and
experienced grandparents were called upon first, followed by supportive aunts and uncles and
finally, eager and excited cousins. Each made pledges to promise to surround the child with
love, support and guidance throughout Declan’s growth and development.
The impact of watching each generation stand to make a public vow within this Life-Cycle
ceremony was immensely powerful, deeply moving and sacred in the most profound way. As
stated by Genna, “Watching everyone take part, especially Declan himself was a moment of joy
and wonder…he was so smiley and bright-eyed, looking around at his family, listening, watching
and taking in this special moment.”
Devotion brought each family member as a witness to the ceremony but love encircled all by
their actions and commitment to celebrate this new child. It is these connections that have the
most impactful and lasting results, as stated by the couple, “Becoming a parent is magical,
miraculous and unbelievable, but it takes a village to navigate the world to bring a better and
brighter future.”
It was a blessing and honour to share in the celebration of this wonderful family milestone.

Community Vows, Photograph by Josh Sauer

Nicole is a Life-Cycle Celebrant and Officiant. She is licensed under the province of Ontario as a
Metaphysical Minister with the Canadian International Metaphysical Ministry (CIMM) and
focuses on wedding and life-cycle ceremonies and other special life events. You can find out
more about Nicole here.
Josh Sauer is a wedding photographer based in Kingston, Ontario. Josh has a gift at capturing
those beautiful moments and memories of connection for weddings, elopements and other
special events in Kingston, Prince Edward County, Ottawa, Toronto and across Southern
Ontario. You can find out more about Josh here.

Photographs included with permission of the photographer for this article only