Huntington Valentine's Day marriage marathon sees 10 couples tie the knot
Anita Briones and Anyelo Oblitas held each other's hands and spoke wedding vows to one another.
The couple, born in Peru and now living in Huntington Station, have known each other for more than two decades and have been together for three years. They joke that it's a long story.
Their latest chapter was written in Huntington Town Hall Saturday morning, part of a marathon of Valentine's Day wedding ceremonies. Ten couples were married by town officials in the town board room, which was transformed with a wedding arch, rose petals and a reception area.
"She's everything to me," Oblitas said. "She's my all."
Anita Briones and Anyelo Oblitas married after three years of dating and more than two decades of knowing each other. Credit: Linda Rosier
Town Clerk Andrew Raia, Councilwoman Theresa Mari and Councilman Dave Bennardo served as wedding officiants. The couples then took photos, cut a sheet cake and had a mini reception with their families in the board room before leaving with goody bags donated by local businesses.
The annual event was started in 1995 by Raia's mother, former Town Clerk Jo-Ann Raia. The town marries couples — and even recently had a pet ceremony — throughout the year. The town doesn't charge couples for the Valentine's Day ceremony. They're only on the hook for the $40 marriage license application fee, Raia said.
Joseph and Carollina Marrone, of Holbrook, were one of 10 couples who took part in the annual tradition. Credit: Linda Rosier
The relationships that come through the town's doors "run the gamut," said Raia, who marries about 12 couples a week, from high school sweethearts and those beginning second marriages to same-sex couples and blended families. In September, Raia married couples and officiated as couples renewed vows outside Heckscher Museum in Huntington to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Supreme Court decision recognizing the right of same-sex couples to marry in the United States.
"It's always about love," Raia said.
Mari, a town councilwoman for the past three years, said Saturday was the first time she'd ever married a couple.
"I'm used to public speaking, but this is a little different," she said, adding she was "honored" to be the person that helped bind two people together. "It's really such a wonderful experience for them, and you want to make it right for them."
James and Tori Zaccoli received gifts from town registrar Connie DiSpirito, right, at the marathon. Credit: Linda Rosier
George and Tiffany Fellows, of East Northport, got married in September — or so their wedding guests thought. The couple wasn't able to locate their birth certificates in time to file for a marriage license, so they needed to go back to the proverbial drawing board.
That's when Tiffany Fellows saw the Town of Huntington advertising its Valentine's Day wedding ceremony marathon.
"And now we're getting married today," she said with a laugh.
The couple met online in 2021 after George Fellows liked her dating profile on two separate services. She decided to give him a shot.
"We spoke that day, and we literally never stopped speaking," she said.
They were each previously married and each brought two children to their new blended family of six.
"I'm very happy, it's finally here," George Fellows said. "After all the celebrating we did in September, we're finally Mr. and Mrs. Fellows."
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Sarra Sounds Off, Ep. 22: Top guards, hockey champs and more On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Newsday's Michael Sicoli talks about the top guards in boys basketball on Long Island, plus Jared Valluzzi on the Suffolk hockey finals, a look at Long Beach wrestler Dunia Sibomana-Rodriguez and the plays of the week.
