Dear friends and family,

As you have seen in the news, COVID-19 has turned our world upside down and Canada has taken swift measures in the last week to ensure the most vulnerable are protected. Manitoba is also taking measures to ensure there isn't a large spike in cases and the situation continues to change each day. In light of this, with our wedding only 11 days away, we wanted to reach out to you.

A number of you have plans to travel here from out of province. We want to make sure that you know that if you feel at all uncomfortable with traveling during this time, that we completely understand if you choose to stay close to home and support whatever decision you choose to make. Many of you will have to make this decision soon in order to recoup flight costs.

For our friends and family joining us from Winnipeg:
We also want to make sure that you know that if you choose to stay home, especially if you are at risk or feel uncomfortable, we bless your decision. There will not be church services for the next two weeks and the church building will be cleaned before the wedding. We will do our best to space our chairs in the sanctuary to provide distance. We would ask that you follow the directives the government has put out to continue to monitor yourself and if you are unwell, to stay at home.

In light of the recommendations that came out today, we will be canceling the reception. We may postpone it for another time later this year. We will let you know. We want to keep our families, friends and community safe, as hard as this decision is to make.

Our church has the ability to live stream their services. We are looking into this option and will let you know if that becomes a possibility.

We will update our website and send out further updates as we make decisions in the coming days.

We didn't anticipate this challenge as we made plans for our wedding day. We are both disappointed and devastated by the current situation. We are doing our best to remain focused on what is most important - our marriage and covenant to one another and to God. Nate and I can't wait to be married and begin our life together. We will do that on March 28th regardless of the circumstances. If it's something that you practice, please keep us and our families in your prayers in these coming days. We don't want this to steal the joy that we feel in anticipation of getting married, but it is a challenge for us both.

Please let us know if your plans to attend the ceremony have changed so that we can have an idea of numbers.

A verse that has come to mind for us in these days is Philippians 4:4-7
"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Praying that God's peace would guard us all in this season.

P.S I have Cc'd Nate so that you can "reply all" and reply back to us both if you wish.

All our love,
Diana and Nate

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The Fort Garry Hotel