Arizona Town Gains Fame As Quick, Easy Wedding Spot

SEDONA, Ariz. - With their hands interlocked, Christie Marquez and her fiance follow a minister they've just met up the sloping terra-cotta-colored rocks, past a shirtless man meditating under a prickly bush and beyond a group of backpackers.

When they reach a clearing providing a panoramic view of sky-high rock formations, the minister turns to the couple. "This is my church," says Robert Sizelove, pointing to the surrounding landscape glowing beneath the setting sun. "This is the cathedral. This is God's home."

It is here, at a spot called Bell Rock, where Marquez, 26, and Mark Wood, 31, become husband and wife. They are among hundreds of couples opting for quick hitches in a state that makes getting married as uncomplicated as paying a bill.

Sedona, otherwise known as "Red Rock Country," has become such a popular spot, it has been listed in wedding magazines as a Top 10 destination in the country.

Sizelove completes his preparations for administering the vows, setting down a cage holding white homing pigeons, which he calls doves, and slipping on a gray long-tail tuxedo while his wife, Sharon, turns up the volume of a boombox playing the wedding march.

As the now-Mr. and Mrs. Wood kiss, the minister releases the birds. "The doves are a symbol of God's love and spirit," he said.

Then: "That's it. In the state of Arizona, it's a done deal."

A simple ceremony

The service is over in less than 20 minutes.

Short, simple and private is just what this couple from the Phoenix suburb of Chandler wanted - just like an increasing number of the lovestruck.

"We always wanted to have our wedding outdoors," said Mrs. Wood, who celebrated 36 weeks of pregnancy when she wed this fall. "We wanted something different, private. This was quick and easy."

Arizona doesn't require residency, a blood test or waiting period after divorces. A marriage license costs $50 at a county court. After the license is signed, it's recorded in the county of issue, signed, sealed and then mailed to the couple.

Ceremonies start at about $150 for simple weddings such as the one chosen by the couple in Chandler and can go as high as several thousand dollars for more extravagant ventures.

Besides the outdoors, weddings occur in resorts, ranches, homes and, of course, churches. Some couples even rent helicopters to tie the knot at desolate rock altars.

Sedona, with a reputation as an artists' colony and New Age retreat, began marketing itself as a wedding destination about three years ago, said Frank Miller, president of the Sedona Oak Creek Canyon Chamber of Commerce. Although figures on the total number of weddings are incomplete, the area appears in the midst of a boom.

The first year the Sizeloves began performing weddings, 1992, they married 12 couples. Last year, they wed 200.

"When we first started, we were the only ones doing weddings," said Sizelove of Sedona Weddings. "Now, there are about a dozen people doing it."

The Sizeloves provide a full service - from the dove ceremony that can take place with just a few hours of advance notice to Renaissance-themed weddings and cowboy weddings in which the bride rides in on a horse.

"Whatever is their dream, we'll do," Sizelove said. "We provide a service without the stress and anxiety that fills most weddings. It's fun and romantic. The ceremony is designed to have two people express their feelings."

More couples, more tourists

Miller said the growing wedding industry boosts tourism because it brings young couples to an area that traditionally attracts older folks with an interest in art.

"By showcasing the beauty of Sedona to young people, they will be visitors for the rest of their lives," Miller said.

Although the nuptials have been compared to Las Vegas - where about 100,000 marriage licenses were issued in 1997 - Miller and others are quick to point out Sedona is not "as commercialized."

"It's not like Las Vegas where you drive by, and somebody throws water at you and you're married," Miller said.

Carol Anderson, a nondenominational minister, started her wedding business, Lord & Rose, six years ago with 50 couples. That figure has since quadrupled. Anderson attributes Sedona's popularity to changing attitudes toward marriage.

"I am not New Age, but I am new thought," Anderson said. "I'm not here to judge people. When people come to me, I marry them. Whatever the consequences, it's their choice."

It's a matter of spirituality, said Sandy Ezrine, wearing a pair of heart-shaped cupid earrings while explaining the success of her four-year-old business, Weddings In Sedona.

"I think people today are more spiritual than they are religious," she said.

Spirituality was the reason Santa Fe residents Larissa and Ken Lewis chose Sedona as the place to renew their vows.

"It's so beautiful, and it has very good, positive energy," said Mrs. Lewis, 48.

The couple said they wanted to keep the remarriage frill-free; they took the traditional route last time, 24 years ago in Chicago.

"Been there, done that," Mrs. Lewis said. "So much had happened, we had decided it was a good time for a fresh start, mid-life crises and all that."

On the day of their service in August, the couple meets Ezrine at the parking lot of the local high school and drives to Coconino National Park. Along for the ride is their 10-year-old son, Kerry, and the family dog, Momo, a pug.

They take a 10-minute walk through the woods lined with raspberry bushes and a gurgling Oak Creek. When they get to the site punctuated by towering pillars of rocks, the Lewises take off their wedding rings and hand them to the minister, Ezrine. Directly behind them, the creek's water gushes over smooth red rocks. Farther back is Cathedral Rock, one of at least 10 rock formations that attract hikers.

Ezrine sets the tone by saying the two are there to declare their love for each other. Mrs. Lewis can't seem to stop giggling. Her husband wears a permanent smile. Momo, the dog, splashes in the water. Kerry remains serious, standing beside his parents like a soldier.

"Take a chill pill," Mrs. Lewis tells the boy.

After exchanging vows, the couple turns to their son. "So what do you think?"

Says Kerry, holding a thumb up, "Aye."