"I do."
Over 200 brides utter these words every year as they stand at the altar in the University's chapel.
From the occasional fresh-faced students to graduates to distinguished professors and community members unaffiliated with the University, the allure of the chapel entices many couples to tie the knot inside its walls every year.
With an elegant exterior of brown and tan stone and stunning stained glass windows, the chapel is an aesthetic masterpiece that many students consider the symbolic spiritual epicenter on Grounds.
Fourth-year College students John Christianson and Sarah Sinclair have planned a chapel wedding for the end of May after graduation, and both feel that the low-key spiritual atmosphere in the chapel makes it the perfect venue for a mutually fulfilling ceremony.
"Because we both have our own churches, it's either get married at my church or his church, but the chapel here is for both of us," Sinclair said. "It's something that both of us can share, rather than just one at a time."
Christianson and Sinclair met on a blind date during their first year at the University and chose the chapel as the site for their wedding because it's special to both of them.
"The chapel's a place that both of us know and it's prettier than either of our churches," Sinclair said. "It just seems neat to get married in the same school you met at. It's kind of special. Plus, it's beautiful."
The alluring beauty and nostalgic significance of the building have led to an extremely competitive reservation process.
"I think the chapel is very romantic," said Linda Harmon, who schedules weddings and other chapel events in the reservations office. "It just has an ambience, even just the setting of the chapel itself."
Wedding reservations must be made one year to the month in advance by lottery, except for the months of September, October and November. During these three months, reservations are accepted in early February, pending the finalization of the home football schedule.
"If someone wants to get married in April 2002, the last week of March was when we accepted entries for lotteries," Harmon said. "Since it is a lottery, we keep calling the applicants until all the spaces are filled."
The reservations office will ask the couples to have several dates in mind, Harmon said, so if the couple is picked in the lottery, one of their choices will be available.
"The chapel is one of the most famous marriage places in town," said Chuck Lane, a University alumnus and owner of Aspen Photo, a local photography company.
Lane, who has spent over 25 years capturing marriages on film, said he has photographed weddings at nearly every church in the central Virginia region, but that the chapel on Grounds has a special significance.
"There's a difference in atmosphere," Lane said. "People are people, but the flavor of the University community does add a certain uniqueness."
The majority of chapel weddings occur among University alumni, infusing the ceremony with an indefinable sense of community.
Nancy Brenneman, a 1975 graduate of the Nursing School, met her husband at the University while he was completing his residency at the hospital.
"We met in Charlottesville and most of our friends lived in Charlottesville at the time" so a chapel wedding seemed appropriate, Brenneman said.
"To come back to the University and a place that has such fond memories for the bride and groom," is a large factor in many couples' decisions to wed on Grounds, Lane said.
Yet not all chapel marriages are based on close ties to the University. Neither Lisa Johnson, a Richmond resident who was married in the chapel last weekend, nor her fiance William Patten III attended the University. Although Patten's father graduated from the University, the decision to get married on Grounds mostly derived from convenience, since the couple had decided to hold their reception at the nearby Farmington Country Club.
Of course, it did not hurt, as Johnson explained, that the newlywed couple finds Charlottesville beautiful.
"The chapel is quaint and really unique," Johnson said.
The old-fashioned charm of the chapel dates to June 1809, when the building was first dedicated. In the subsequent two hundred years, a baroque-type organ has been installed, along with electronic chimes and additional stained glass windows. Today, the chapel is available every day for informal prayer.
Johnson said that she believes that the chapel provides a comfortable setting for a shared spiritual and religious experience.
"We are having a Catholic ceremony and we thought the chapel would be appropriate," Johnson said. "It's kind of a universal place of worship. It doesn't scream Catholicism."
The dim interior of the chapel is illuminated only by the pale glow of torches and colored light diffused by the vibrant stained glass windows.
"Especially the windows to the left, when there's full sun through them at sunset on a wintry day, the Tiffany glass windows are sensational," Lane said.
The simple wooden pews hold only 250 guests, creating a small, intimate ambiance.
"I just love that setting," Brenneman gushed. "I think it's just so special and charming."
Although students may not have marriage on their minds at the moment, chapel weddings will never go out of style. Make your reservations today. prettier than either of our churches," Sinclair said. "It just seems neat to get married in the same school you met at. It's kind of special. Plus, it's beautiful."
The alluring beauty and nostalgic significance of the building have led to an extremely competitive reservation process.
"I think the chapel is very romantic," said Linda Harmon, who schedules weddings and other chapel events in the reservations office. "It just has an ambience, even just the setting of the chapel itself."
Wedding reservations must be made one year to the month in advance by lottery, except for the months of September, October and November. During these three months, reservations are accepted in early February, pending the finalization of the home football schedule.
"If someone wants to get married in April 2002, the last week of March was when we accepted entries for lotteries," Harmon said. "Since it is a lottery, we keep calling the applicants until all the spaces are filled."
The reservations office will ask the couples to have several dates in mind, Harmon said, so if the couple is picked in the lottery, one of their choices will be available.
"The chapel is one of the most famous marriage places in town," said Chuck Lane, a University alumnus and owner of Aspen Photo, a local photography company.
Lane, who has spent over 25 years capturing marriages on film, said he has photographed weddings at nearly every church in the central Virginia region, but that the chapel on Grounds has a special significance.
"There's a difference in atmosphere," Lane said. "People are people, but the flavor of the University community does add a certain uniqueness."
The majority of chapel weddings occur among University alumni, infusing the ceremony with an indefinable sense of community.
Nancy Brenneman, a 1975 graduate of the Nursing School, met her husband at the University while he was completing his residency at the hospital.
"We met in Charlottesville and most of our friends lived in Charlottesville at the time," so a chapel wedding seemed appropriate, Brenneman said.
"To come back to the University and a place that has such fond memories for the bride and groom," is a large factor in many couples' decisions to wed on Grounds, Lane said.
Yet not all chapel marriages are based on close ties to the University. Neither Lisa Johnson, a Richmond resident who was married in the chapel last weekend, nor her fiance William Patten III attended the University. Although Patten's father graduated from the University, the decision to get married on Grounds mostly derived from convenience, since the couple had decided to hold their reception at the nearby Farmington Country Club.
Of course, it did not hurt, as Johnson explained, that the newlywed couple finds Charlottesville beautiful.
"The chapel is quaint and really unique," Johnson said.
The old-fashioned charm of the chapel dates to June 1809, when the building was first dedicated. In the subsequent 200 years, a baroque-type organ has been installed, along with electronic chimes and additional stained glass windows. Today, the chapel is available every day for informal prayer.
Johnson said that she believes the chapel provides a comfortable setting for a shared spiritual and religious experience.
"We are having a Catholic ceremony, and we thought the chapel would be appropriate," Johnson said. "It's kind of a universal place of worship. It doesn't scream Catholicism."
The dim interior of the chapel is illuminated only by the pale glow of torches and colored light diffused by the vibrant stained glass windows.
"Especially the windows to the left, when there's full sun through them at sunset on a wintry day, the Tiffany glass windows are sensational," Lane said.
The simple wooden pews hold only 250 guests, creating a small, intimate ambiance.
"I just love that setting," Brenneman gushed. "I think it's just so special and charming."
Although students may not have marriage on their minds at the moment, chapel weddings will never go out of style. Make your reservations today.
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