Here Come the Brides and Grooms
By Mary Conrad

“The maid of honor arrived without her little bonnet of net and fur. There were a few minutes of panic in the bride’s room, then the bride’s father went after the confection, without which, apparently, the ceremony could not have taken place.”

Thus began the first wedding in the Alumni Memorial Chapel, prelude to hundreds more.

Built in 1961 with funds from alumni and friends, following an earlier John Gaw Meem design, the non-denominational chapel commemorates UNM’s war dead, whose names are inscribed on the south wall.

Not only weddings, but christenings, memorial services, and other occasions comprise the more than 200 annual chapel events. The Fellowship of the Desert annually celebrates Jewish high holidays in the chapel. For those seeking a space for prayer and contemplation, the chapel opened its doors on September 11, 2001, and opens them annually on Veterans’ Day. But it’s the romances we remember as February 14 nears. Gina Maes and Frieda Stewart have seen to the concerns and requirements of countless weddings over the past 10 years. While weddings in the hundreds can become humdrum, every now and then something special still strikes them. Most poignant, says Frieda, was the wedding of young bride who had terminal cancer. While she had wanted to cancel the wedding when she learned of her illness, her fiancé insisted. A year later, the bride’s memorial service was held in the chapel.

Beaming Bride: The chapel’s first bride, Patricia Goldsworthy (now Patricia Felix), stands before the altar on her wedding day in 1961.

Most impressive, Frieda says, were the sounds of the bagpiper who approached the chapel from a distance to play for a wedding.

Most humorous, she says, have been the animal attendants: “flower-dogs” and doggie ring-bearers dressed in tuxes.

“Sometimes you wonder what the bride was thinking,” says Frieda about the bridal gowns she has seen. “Dressed in billowing satin or taffeta of god-awful colors, they can look like lampshades and toilet-paper covers.” But other times, “they’re simply elegant.”

Gina adds a story about the most unexpected. The doors to the chapel were open during one summer ceremony. Several dogs playing in the duckpond made a beeline to the altar and shook themselves dry, flinging pond water all over the wedding party.

Most Western, Frieda says, was a small ceremony with only a dozen guests. The wedding party dressed entirely in black—cowboy boots, jeans, shirts, and hats. The couple departed in a horse-drawn carriage—its driver also in black.

Most patriotic, says Frieda, was a red, white, and blue wedding, with the chapel’s giant American flag lowered behind the altar.

Once, Frieda stood in for a bridesmaid, extending the attendants ages from teens to 63. “My young man was very handsome,” she says.

The chapel is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Couples interested in reserving the chapel need to allow plenty of lead time. May and June wedding reservations should be made a good six to nine months in advance, as should weddings planned for special days, such as Valentine’s Day. UNM alumni, full-time students, faculty, staff, and their parents, children, and siblings are qualified to rent the chapel.

Check out the chapel’s website at http://www.unmalumni.com/chapel for more information and a virtual tour.

UNM Alumni Relations    MSC 01 – 1160    1 The University of New Mexico    Albuquerque, NM 87131-0001    800.ALUM.UNM (800.258.6866)