Sorry you weren't invited: Announcement wording for a covid wedding

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I’m the mother of the bride — I want to send out an announcement about my daughter's wedding, but I want to include a simple statement of why the recipient was not invited due to concerns about covid and social distancing.

The wedding was in November with a limit of 30 guests — this means many family and close friends were not invited.

I want to say something like, "Father and Mother of the Bride are thrilled to announce the marriage of their daughter Cailtlyn to Alex on November 23rd, 2020…." but now I’m stuck on how to incorporate why they couldn’t invite those whom they wished to be there.

Help?

Dear Mother Of The Bride,

First of all, we want to say we really appreciate how thoughtful you’re being in trying to let people know about this joyous occasion while also being sensitive to potential hurt feelings for not being able to attend.

Secondly, know that you’re not alone in navigating this new terrain. It has been a particularly difficult year having to adjust weddings to be smaller, postponing, or even canceling — which means many couples and families are going through similar struggles.

Our advice in your situation, and others like it, is threefold:

1. Be thoughtful
2. Keep it simple
3. Focus on the positive

Be thoughtful

Understand how they might be feeling, whether about this specific situation or other hardships related to the pandemic. It has been a difficult time for many, so being sensitive and empathetic is paramount.

Keep it simple

There’s no need to attach a link to the specific county guidelines that mandated the number of people who could be invited or write a long apology explaining how you made your decisions on who could and could not attend. Let them know they were missed, and if applicable, let them know about a future celebration once it is safe to do so.

Focus on the positive

At the end of the day, most friends and family will simply be happy for the newlyweds. While there may be some disappointment that they were unable to attend, that is not something that you or anyone else should carry guilt about. So remember that they love you, and let them share in the joy of your new and growing family!

We’ve included some covid wedding announcement wording examples below, but as with most wedding-related recommendations, feel free to use this as inspiration and adjust to be true to you and your situation.

Jan and Ronald Jones are thrilled to announce the marriage of their daughter Caitlyn Jones to Alex MacGregor. Caitlyn and Alex were wed in an intimate ceremony on November 15th, 2020. Our beloved community of friends and family were deeply missed, and we can’t wait to celebrate together soon.

Caitlyn and Alex tied the knot in an intimate backyard wedding on November 15th, 2020. We were saddened to not be able to celebrate with all of our loved ones as planned but are looking forward to years of love and celebration shared with all of you.

We are happy to announce the recent nuptials of Caitlyn Jones and Alex MacGregor. Although we were unable to share this moment with all of our loved ones, you were with us in our hearts and minds. Sending all of our love, and hope to celebrate together in the near future.

Caitlyn Jones and Alex MacGregor were wed in an intimate ceremony on Orcas Island on November 15th, 2020. While our ceremony may have been different than we had planned, we still plan on celebrating with all of our friends and family in the near future. Thank you for your patience and understanding during this time.

Love is patient, but we aren’t. Caitlyn and Alex exchanged vows on November 15th, 2020.
We regret being unable to share this moment with all of our loved ones, but we are so excited to embark on this new journey in life together. A belated wedding celebration will be held in summer 2022, and we hope to celebrate with you all then. Formal invitation to follow.

The Jones and MacGregor families are thrilled to announce the marriage of Caitlyn Jones to Alex MacGregor. In keeping with recommended safety and health regulations, Caitlyn and Alex were wed in a small outdoor ceremony on November 15th, 2020. Your presence was deeply missed and we hope to cheers over a glass of champagne in the near future.

We hope these covid wedding announcement wording examples were helpful. Remember, 2020 has been such a confusing situation for all of us… our hope is that any friends and family members would be understanding, and hopefully these announcement wording samples will help fend off any hurt feelings.