As an officiant, I am often asked how to choose an officiant.  I meet with couples and present my materials.  I have a book of various ceremonies and ideas.  And I have lots of thank you letters and pictures from past weddings.  We go through all of the materials and then there is a silence.  I ask if there are any questions and the couple usually look at each other and me with puzzled looks and tell me that they don't really know what else to ask.  So I offer you some questions you might want to ask the officiant to help you make your decision.

  What exactly does the fee include?  Are there any other hidden fees?

Can we write our own vows? And is there an extra fee for this?

Can we change the ceremony if we want to?  And is there an extra fee for this?

Can we include other people in the ceremony, in terms of readings, singing, etc.

If there are children from previous relationships involved, does the officiant have vows that include the children?

And here are some questions to ask yourselves:

Do you feel comfortable with this person? 

 Can we talk comfortably and honestly with this person?

Do we feel like we can trust the person enough to feel comfortable turning the responsibility of officiating the ceremony over to that person?