The Syracuse Post-Standard interviewed local couples who are planning to get married under New York’s new marriage equality legislation. One couple was coming back for seconds.
Becky Clifford and her wife, Terri Clifford, of Liverpool, were married last year in Connecticut. They already have all the rights and protections of marriage in New York, but they plan to renew their vows in a ceremony on their first anniversary at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church in Liverpool.
“There are always going to be people who don’t look at us as usual, and that’s OK,” Clifford said. “There are not going to be as many questions. When I mention my wife, people aren’t going to say, ‘Is that legal?’”
Folks at St. Matthew’s were pleased to see their friends names in the paper.
“Becky, Terri, and their family have been active parishioners at St. Matthew’s for several years,” the Rev. Carrie Schofield-Broadbent, the rector, wrote to us. ” I rejoice with them and look forward to working together to plan for their next steps.
“There’s something truly beautiful about people pledging their love, commitment, and life-long fidelity to each other. I believe that with marriage equality, we are moving closer to being the Beloved Community, the Kingdom of God here on earth. We may not be quite there yet, but we rejoice when that grace shines through.”