By Cindy Price
June is the traditional month of marriage. More than ever,
these weddings involve brides and grooms who have been
married before. Just not to each other.
Almost everyone quotes the somber statistic that half of all
first marriages will end in divorce. Yet according to the National
Center for Health Statistics, that rate is more like 37%.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 59% of adult
Americans are married. So if 37% of that 59% divorces, and
a divorce takes two people, that means 74% (37% x 2) of 59%
of all married adults could get divorced. So if I cross my t’s and
carry the one, I find that a lot of people are happily getting
married again. Phooey on the statistics.
 One well-known photographer actually makes second marriages
her specialty. Pam Culpepper of J. Pamela Photography
advertises: “While Pam is happy to photograph your bridal
and engagement portraits, she limits herself to second marriages.”
This statement may sound counter-productive but this
busy professional has good reasons for this unique business approach.
“It’s mostly for time management,” Pam explains. “Most
weddings take place over the weekend and I’m already shooting
five days a week. With second marriages, the weddings
are usually smaller, though not less detailed, and quality
photography is at the top of many couples’ lists. I work more
directly with the bride and groom than in many first marriages,
which I enjoy. You could say there are no MOB (Mother of the
Bride) issues,” Pam laughs.
She added that many clients chuckle when they see the
embroidered pillow on her office couch that states: Eat. Drink.
Remarry.
Pam shared with Change Magazine some of her second
wedding portraits and the stories behind the happy couples. If
you’re headed to the altar this summer, whether for the first or
second or even third time, we think you’ll be inspired by their
stories and interested in their marital advice.
Kelli and Paul. Before their
marriage in March 2006, Kelli
and Paul Poncio were both single
parents with two kids each. They
lived across the street from each
other for several years before becoming a couple. “Being busy with our
own lives, we really didn’t pay much attention to each other,” Paul
explains. “Even though Kelli had sometimes babysat my children.”
 That all changed when Kelli and Paul “met” at the South Shore
Harbour Wine Festival. It took a fun social setting to get them out of
their neighborly relationship into a dating one. Their romance culminated
in a charming wedding at a quaint tea room. All four children
were part of the ceremony, exchanging Christian charms. Paul, a typical
groom even though having been married before, remembers he was
so nervous he couldn’t work the clasps on the charms.
Today the couple will tell you the best part of their marriage is
putting their kids together. That’s because the kids were neighborhood
friends long before their parents hooked up. The couple loves children
so much that they brought another one into the world. Their baby
daughter is almost one-year-old.
Their advice to other couples putting together a new family: Put God
first. And remember there’s more than one way to do something – your
way is not always the right way. Divvy up household responsibilities
and both take an active role.
Tracy and Robin. Tracy Birkelbach was 40 when she married for
the first time. She waited until she found the man she knew would
be right for her. After only two years of wedded bliss, her wonderful
husband died, leaving her single again.
Though grieving, Tracy stayed active in the community. At the
country club she noticed divorcee Robin Kremen. She heard a little
voice in her head: This is your next husband. Discounting the message,
Tracy reluctantly began to date again.
Robin, divorced after over 15 years of marriage, thought what many
divorced people first think: I’ll never marry again. Yet he was equally
smitten by Tracy. “I knew from the start Tracy was the one for me,”
Robin says. “But I knew she was grieving, so I had to give her
space.”
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