WASHINGTON–With wedding season just around the corner, dozens of brides- and grooms-to-be came out for the fourth annual Same Love, Same Rights Gay and Lesbian Wedding Expo Sunday.
The happy couples perused gay and gay-friendly vendors as they planned their big days in a comfortable, come-as-you-are setting.
Attendees can be “comfortable walking around together as a couple,” said organizer Cindy Sproul, co-owner of RainbowWeddingNetwork.com, an event sponsor. “They don’t get asked questions like ‘Are you sisters?’ and ‘Which one of you are planning?'”
She said the expo is a needed break from “traditional bridal” events, even in more progressive cities like Washington.
“It’s just a show that’s particularly for gay and lesbian couples,” she said.
Patrick Sanders and his fiancé David Solomon say they’ve been mistaken for friends before–and it’s why they came to Sunday’s event to start planning their 2014 wedding.
“It’s not like we’re two buddies here together looking because our wives are at the next booth,” said Patrick Sanders, who came with his fiancé David Solomon. “People are supportive and recognize that we’re in the relationship together, we’re the two getting married.”