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Weddings With Heart: Spread Love by Giving Back

ALLIE MURRAY AND RAYE MOCIOIU

The wedding bells are ringing, and surrounded by mountainous scenery and the flows of the Pacific Ocean, Vancouver is the perfect backdrop for a picturesque ceremony.

The Pop-Up Chapel began when founder Lynzie Kent considered how the sharing economy could be applied to weddings and include social responsibilities like sustainability, inclusivity, simplicity, and more. After serving the wedding and event industry for a decade, the team behind The Pop-Up Chapel Co. made a realization— the wedding industry was undergoing a major change. Couples were eschewing the traditional life sequence to follow their own paths, like pursuing careers, having children, or prioritizing travel, all before marriage. Today’s couples are less interested in following traditions that don’t feel authentic and more interested in simplifying their lives using technology, embracing the sharing economy,

and saying no to brands that don’t reflect their modern values.

“We were committed to filling the white space between a city hall wedding and a traditional banquet hall wedding with hundreds of guests, as well as to provide an answer to this changing shift in values and needs, and that’s how The Pop-Up Chapel Co. was born,” Kent explained.

Pop-Up Chapel makes it easy for couples to create a wedding that upholds their values and even gives back to causes that are important to them.

The mission of the chapels is in its name—they “pop up” in locations and have up to ten different wedding ceremonies in the chapel per day. That’s one couple an hour, every hour, for ten hours straight.

Since beginning in Toronto, Pop-Up Chapel has been committed to donating $300 from every chapel spot sold to charity. To date, they have worked with more than 20 charitable partners ranging from The United Way, One Tree Planted, SickKids, Black Health Alliance, and more.

Thus far, they have raised more than $96,000 for local charities, with a goal of raising $100,000 by May of this year.

Expanding their reach, Pop- Up Chapel moved out west: providing quick, easy, and equal access to wedding venues. The inaugural chapel in Vancouver was held on October 1, 2021, supporting Covenant House Vancouver, a local organization providing love, support, and hope to Vancouver’s homeless and at-risk street youth.

For Vancouver-based ceremonies in 2022, Pop-Up Chapel is supporting The University Women’s Club Trust Fund for Education and Mission Possible. They currently have three wedding dates set for Vancouver couples—April 8, July 15, and October 14—with hopes to add more dates to the line-up.

“Since our first chapel in August of 2017, we’ve married over 320 couples through countless chapels and raised more than $96,000 for Canadian charities,” Kent explained. “This year, we’ll reach our milestone goal of donating over $100,000

to local Canadian charities and we’ll host chapels across Canada in Vancouver, Toronto, Ottawa and Hamilton.”

At each location across Canada, Pop-Up Chapel is working towards reducing the use of single-use plastics and finding ways to create more sustainable decor.

PLANNING THE PICTURE-PERFECT VANCOUVER WEDDING In Vancouver, Pop-Up Chapel hosts weddings at Hycroft Manor, an Edwardian mansion with a variety of beautiful rooms and outdoor spaces, and The Wallace, a gorgeous event space at the Shipyards.

For celebrations after the nuptials, Vancouver has a selection of delicious restaurants. Pop-Up Chapel worked with their Vancouver Brand Ambassador, Morgan from The Wednesday Wedding Co., to round up some of their top picks.

Ancora: Operating on a mission to embrace the harmony of Peruvian and Japanese cultures,

Ancora serves delicious authentic food while incorporating the bounty of the West Coast.

Vij’s: Using traditional Indian methods, spices and culinary influences and pairing them with sustainable, local produce from British Columbia, Vij’s created one of the best-known and most beloved Indian restaurants in North America.

Gotham Steakhouse & Bar: With beautifully appointed private dining rooms, Gotham Steakhouse & Bar provides unique options for any occasion, whether elegantly formal or casually relaxed.

Blue Water Cafe: is Vancouver’s definitive destination for seafood and consistently awarded Best Seafood Restaurant in Vancouver.

Teahouse Drawing Room: With social distancing in place, The Drawing can accommodate up to 30 guests for an intimate private celebration post chapel!

L’abattoir: French-influenced West Coast fare is paired with an award-winning wine program and inspired cocktail list to offer an unforgettable dining experience.

Christiane Despins and Catherine Lowrey’s WEDDING STORY

FLORALS ARE BY MAX AT ECORCE FLOWERS. IMAGE © SIMPLY SWEET WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY

Our wedding was the best, most amazing, magical day we could have hoped for! All due to the fantastic planning and attention to details by The Pop-Up Chapel Co.

On October 1, 2021 we exchanged vows at the Hycroft Manor in Vancouver in front of nine guests. Due to the pandemic, we actually had given up hope we could have any sort of dream wedding. We happened across The Pop-Up Chapel Co. purely by chance and when we saw they would take care of everything—we were sold! We had never heard of such an idea before

but totally put our trust in them. All we had to do was show up and the rest was up to them and they certainly didn’t disappoint! All plans, hopes and dreams were fulfilled.

We met almost 23 years ago and through many trying times our love for each other grew and we wanted to celebrate our commitment to each other.

For us, it truly was a fairytale wedding. The flowers were exceptional, the cake, photos, and history of the venue captured the beauty and romance of the day. We were thrilled that a donation to Covenant Place was also part of the package.