Seattle Wedding Officiant: Meet Bronwen | Shotgun Ceremonies

There are two extremes most couples picture when they Google “Seattle wedding officiant.”

1. The courthouse. Fluorescent lights, a number waiting to be called, no music, no personality.

2. A ballroom or a church officiant. Timelines, RSVPs and a budget that makes your eye twitch.

Shotgun Ceremonies lives in the middle on purpose. Same legal paperwork, totally different experience. Pink chapel or outdoor gazebo. Music on cue. Personalized vows that sound like you. Witnesses if you need them. About 30–45 minutes with up to an hour in the space so it never feels rushed. If life calls for speed, a 5-minute legal “yes” is possible. And at the center of it all is Bronwen.

Nearly twenty years ago on a Fourth of July, she got ordained on a hunch. No plan, just a feeling she’d do something meaningful with that license. She was right. Since then she’s married thousands of couples, keeping ceremonies simple, legal and personal without making them feel small.

“Your ceremony should feel like how you got here,” she says. “It should reaffirm why you’re here and make you feel the joy, love and excitement for your future together.”

What it feels like when Bronwen officiates

Imagine walking into the tiny pink chapel a little nervous. You hear your song. The room settles. The script isn’t a monologue; it’s a conversation. Bronwen leads, you breathe and there’s room for personal remarks if you want to make them, no pressure if you don’t. That’s by design. She doesn’t require prepared vows. She reads the room and shapes a ceremony to your comfort level and personality, making space for meaning without forcing a moment.

Her favorite part is the surprise. “I love when people cry when they didn’t expect to,” she says. “I love when couples come in nervous and leave joyous and grateful that it was easy, meaningful, reflective. Even when kids, pets or family arrive a little unruly, the ceremony just quiets everything and love is the loudest thing in the room.”

Why couples pick Shotgun over the courthouse (or a big ballroom)

Legally, it’s the same ceremony you’d get at the courthouse. Practically, it’s better. You get music. You get a setting that photographs well (and we'll even take pictures for you during the ceremony - no extra charge!). You get space for a handful of your favorite people - feet or paws welcome. You get someone who keeps the flow calm and human then files your paperwork for you. You also get options: our indoor pink shipping container chapel, our outdoor (covered) gazebo, off-site favorites around Seattle, Elvis for iconic old-Vegas vibes or a Pub Crawl Wedding if you want to sign your license in a booth between toasts.

Booking is simple. Check the calendar and lock your time. No venue tours, caterer calls or months of emails. If your license is valid and our schedule’s open, you can even get married the same day. Courthouses book up fast and appointments disappear, ballrooms come with deposits, minimums and a list of vendors you didn’t want to manage. Here, it’s the same legal ceremony with a faster path to yes, a clearer price and a timeline that fits real life.

The officiant you’ll remember ten years from now

Bronwen’s goal isn’t just to get you legally married. It’s to give you a story you light up telling years from now. “I hope people describe it as fun, unique and sweetly memorable,” she says. “That they still glow when they talk about it five, ten, even forty years later.”

That’s the Shotgun difference: courthouse simple, way more you.

How to make it official

• Get your license (don’t forget the 3-day waiting period).

• Choose your setting: chapel, gazebo, off-site, Elvis or Pub Crawl.

• Show up and celebrate: bring your paperwork; we’ll cue the music and handle the legal parts.

Looking for a Seattle wedding officiant who keeps it legal, keeps it personal and keeps you out of the overwhelm? You just found her.

Book your date or learn more about Shotgun Ceremonies. Why plan bigger, just pull the trigger.