Friday, June 06, 2008
‘I do’ 38 times over
By Garry A. Cabotaje
Sun.Star Staff Reporter
A COUPLE yesterday proved that physical disability is not a hindrance to exchange marital vows.
Remegio Quiño, 39, marched unsteadily as he and Connie, his live-in partner for 18 years, walked down the aisle in a mass wedding yesterday afternoon.
Quiño, a former jeepney conductor, got injured in the right leg during a road mishap in Basak, Cebu City nine years ago.
The pair and 37 unwed couples exchanged “I dos” at Sto. Niño Parish Church in Barangay Mohon officiated by three parish priests led by Fr. Vic Amplayo.
Councilor Shirley Belleza, head of the city council committee on women, family and minors, spearheaded the 2 p.m. marital rites held to eliminate live-in relationships in Talisay.
Quiño, a resident of Barangay Tanke, considered the mass wedding a rare chance for them as they need not spend a single centavo for the nuptial ceremonies and
reception.
He saw the need to formally marry Connie, a lechon vendor, when he got hired as a maintenance worker at Talisay City Hall in 2003.
Quiño was obliged to submit his marriage certificate as among the requirements for his employment.
He said they lived together as an unmarried couple for 18 years as he wanted Connie’s full consent before tying the knot.
They have two kids - a 14-year-old girl and a two-year-old boy.
The couple thanked Mayor Socrates Fernandez and Belleza for legitimizing their union.
At 58, Genaro Abadiez, a widower, is the oldest among the 38 grooms in yesterday’s wedding rites.
Abadiez married Evangelyn Patigayon, 44, his neighbor in Barangay Bulacao, Cebu City. They have been living out of wedlock since 2000.
For the newlyweds, it was indeed a special day for them as they were treated to a sumptuous reception at the spacious front yard of the City Hall.
Their tables had wedding cakes and bottles of red wine, courtesy of a private company and a nongovernment organization. (GC)
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (June 6, 2008 issue)
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