Rabbi Rayzel Raphael

different ceremony given the circumstances, and made the day feel just as special. She took time getting to know us, what is important o us and our families, and helped us talk through ideas and traditions. She is compassionate, flexible, warm and knowledgeable and we cannot wait to celebrate next year, in person, with Rabbi Rayzel.

bout 2-3 weeks in advance) and still managed to really and truly tailor the ceremony to our requests and to our personalities. I genuinely could not have asked for a better wedding, *even* given the circumstances, and we would both enthusiastically recommend her to anyone that wants something unique, warm, fun, and unforgettable. We hope to stay in touch with her and see her again!

ah signing with both families,parents and grandparents included. She made everyone a part of the celebration. The ceremony was great; it was engaging to all that attended. You could feel the love in the room that day. Many of our friends both Jews and nonJews told us it was one of the best ceremonies they ever attended. Rabbi Rayzel made everyone there feel included that day. Many thanks to her for a day we will never forget!

also provided suggestions to bring my husband’s heritage into our ceremony as well. Rabbi Rayzel provided examples while allowing us to create our own ceremony customized to us, with a Kiddush blessing and handfasting! She helped us find a Ketubah and made our Ketubah-signing ceremony with our families and witnesses one of the most special parts of our day. Countless friends and family members told us at the reception and cocktail hour how beautiful our ceremony was! I cannot recommend Rabbi Rayzel highly enough. She did everything to make sure our ceremony was unique to us and memorable for our guests.

uches such as musical elements and novel ceremonial pieces. We were guided all along the way to design a ceremony that we felt was unique to us and fully expressed our commitment to one another and our deeply-held values. Despite the pouring rain, many of our guests came forward in the weeks following the wedding to let us know how much they felt Rabbi Rayzel was responsible for holding an intimate and intentional ceremony. Would highly recommend!

to a beautiful wedding day, but more importantly, to a beautiful and loving life together! At first we were hesitant about getting a Ketubah (being a fairly budget-conscious couple), but we are so thankful that Rabbi Rayzel recommended we get one. The Ketubah signing still remains one of my favorite parts of the wedding day! I am a complete introvert so the thought of a big party was daunting in itself (we only had about 80 guests but even that felt like a huge crowd to me) -- That Ketubah signing was surprisingly just what I needed and set me at ease before the ceremony. I was so thankful to have those few moments of peaceful and intimate reflection on the day, the meaning of this commitment, and the melding of our families, cultures, and traditions. It was so beautiful, in fact, that I teared up when my MIL whispered her beautiful and loving words of wisdom/advice in my ear. Before I even start talking about how wonderful the ceremony was, I must mention all the priceless guidance Rabbi Rayzel provided us before the Big Day. She had us draft a "cohabitation agreement," which is a document that outlines all of the things in life that are most important to us, individually and as a couple. There were things on the list that we had never thought to discuss, but were definitely things we should have discussed before marriage. Going through the process of drafting that document really helped us ground our relationship and future commitment in reality. All too often, people get caught up in the whirlwind of wedding planning and perfecting every aspect of their Big Day, and they let slip the things that truly matter: how will you and your spouse live every day of the rest of your lives in such a way that both individuals are happy and fulfilled? I am so thankful to have been asked to really sit down with my husband before the wedding and discuss (agree on or compromise on) all these important details of our future lives together. So few officiants go out of their way to help couples prepare for their Big Day in this way -- Thank you, Rabbi Rayzel! Now, before I ramble too much, a little blurb about the ceremony itself: we had an outdoor ceremony and it was really really hot (high 80s), so everyone was fanning themselves with their programs. Despite the less than ideal weather, Rabbi Rayzel pulled off the ceremony beautifully! It was heartfelt, intimate, and a perfect union of our two cultures! Traditional Chinese wedding ceremonies are really quite simple and consist mainly of the Bai Tang (or three bows to Heaven and Earth), which honor the bride and groom's families and each other. Thus, we went with a mostly Jewish ceremony with the Bai Tang included right after the Moment of Remembrance, which was absolutely perfect! Thank you, Rabbi, for everything!! You helped make our day truly one to remember!

ajor people that brought us back into reality about the day, reminding us it is not just about all the planning and details. The ceremony was all that we imagined. We had a interfaith ceremony, and both parts of the ceremony were perfect. Our favorite moment was the signing of the ketubah. We weren't sure what this moment would be like, but it was very emotional and unique. We have multiple keepsakes from the special day from our ceremony. Rabbi explained the importance and meanings of the different aspects of interfaith ceremonies, what this would look like for our big day, and have us decide what we would like to include. We would highly recommend booking your very special day with Rabbi Rayzel and we are so happy that we found her for ours.

from our first phone conversation, and welcomed us to her home for our second meeting. She was warm, responsive, and helpful throughout all of the planning, and gave us exercises that really helped us get to know each other prior to the wedding day. Every single guest at our wedding said it was the most beautiful ceremony they've ever witnessed and that it was so uniquely "us" -- and raved about how entertaining Rabbi made it. Rabbi also helped us incorporate Jewish customs (like the Ketubah), while making it comfortable and tailored for us as an interfaith couple. I was particularly impressed with how astute Rabbi is. I placed some items on the table that I didn't mention to her, and throughout the ceremony she knew just when we wanted them and handed them over -- without me having to say a word. She added in some of her own flair to the wedding, including opening with a song, which was such a sweet surprise. Thank you, Rabbi Rayzel, for making our ceremony so special.

really had a way of bringing everyone in and explaining things in a simple way. She facilitated such a powerful and emotional ketubah signing and ceremony. Both our families had nothing but great things to say about her! She really tried to get to know us as a couple and prompted us to have really thoughtful conversations as we were preparing for the wedding. I definitely recommend Rabbi Rayzel!

cluded; people who hadn't yet met the groom, learned about him and our love through Rabbi's words. Rabbi even took distractions from the flower girl in stride, including it in the ceremony to engage everyone instead of ignoring it. Thank you Rabbi for making us both so comfortable and delivering a beautiful ceremony that was representative of our love!

ion of us. We felt so comfortable planning the interfaith ceremony with her and she was wonderful at providing us with the best information and recommendations. We initially wanted a very quick ceremony but she helped us create a ceremony that was extremely meaningful and specific to the two of us and everyone absolutely loved it. We received compliments from pretty much EVERYONE at our wedding about how much they loved Rabbi Rayzel and our ceremony. She is wonderful and I would recommend her to any couple getting married!

e gained from that night was invaluable and also led us to selecting a Reverend Rayzel previously worked with to co-officiate our wedding :). She is so open minded and accommodating. Our ceremony was completely unique to us and all of our guests told us how much they enjoyed it. There is no doubt she was the perfect Rabbi for us and I'm sure she will be for you too! Thank you for everything!!!

could give 10/5, she's worth it!

d & wife. She was very thoughtful and helped us think more about important topics that we may not have considered. She also co-officiated a wonderful ceremony - we received so many compliments from our guests about our ceremony & about how it was so tailored and customized. We definitely recommend Rabbi Rayzel to anyone considering a Jewish or interfaith wedding!

it! It was so special. My husband's family as well as my family were in complete awe over the Jewish symbols as well as the personalizations. The ceremony truly exceeded our expectations. We just got our video back and we cannot get over how perfect everything was. It was amazing reliving the ketubah signing and the ceremony. You were PHENOMENAL. More than we could have ever expected. Thank you SO MUCH.

h), Rabbi introduced us to a wonderful priest and made sure that everyone felt comfortable and accepted on our wedding day!Once you are under her wing and in her circle, she is there to help you work out anything you need (even putting a rowdy bridal party in their place). Our wedding was on 6/4/17 and she continues to reach out and check on us, letting us know we are in her thoughts and that is awesome! We hope to have Rabbi Rayzel as a part of many significant moments in our lives and any couple would be lucky to have her!

w beautiful the ceremony was. Rabbi Rayzel does a great job of keeping the room in the moment and loosens the everyone up with some comedic relief. I definitely recommend her for your wedding!

d bless us. Our family will cherish the video of both the Ketubah signing and our ceremony in front of loved ones. You led the most important day for us as a couple that we will remember forever, and we have you to thank for that!

ketubah and wedding ceremony. Everyone loved it, and we got such compliments. It was beautiful and it was great working with such a pro. I highly recommend Rabbi Rayzel as an officiant for a wedding.

ing to know us and who we are as a couple. She was extremely thorough in coordinating our ceremony. On the wedding day, Rabbi Raphael began with a beautiful Ketubah signing ceremony that included our close family. Everyone felt they were part of something special. The wedding ceremony was so memorable and elegant. Rabbi Raphael brought her incredible talent to life in a way that went beyond our expectations. During the ceremony, she brought the meaning of Judaism into all of our guests hearts with her explanations of the chuppah, the wine, the breaking of the glass, and the circling. Although we only met Rabbi Raphael on the day of our wedding, we feel as if we have known her for many years. Everyone commented to us during the cocktail hour and reception how beautiful our ceremony was to them. Jewish and non-Jewish guests felt the joy and love in the room because of Rabbi Raphael. We highly recommend Rabbi Raphael to bring the meaning of your wedding day to life as she did for us.