Bride and groom hold wedding at cemetery so spirits could attend
When it came time for Janyl Jumadinova and Oliver Bonham-Carter to plan their wedding, they knew the perfect place: Forest Lawn, the largest cemetery in Omaha, Nebraska.
Jumadinova is from Kyrgyzstan, and said that her culture strongly believes in spirits. Bonham-Carter was also drawn to the idea of having his deceased ancestors who are buried at the cemetery close by on his wedding day. "It's not at all creepy," he told The Omaha World-Herald. "We have thousands of witnesses — both alive and dead!"
The couple was married earlier this year in Pennsylvania, but also wanted to have a second, larger wedding with more guests. The Omaha ceremony was held inside of a 101-year-old funeral chapel on the cemetery grounds, and relatives came from all over the world to attend, with some traveling more than 6,000 miles.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Only one other wedding has ever been held in the chapel, cemetery manager Gregory Easley told The World-Herald. He added that that he didn't think it was strange at all that Jumadinova and Bonham-Carter vowed to be together until death do them part in what might be their final resting place.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
The art world and motherhood: the end of a final taboo?
Talking Point Hettie Judah's new touring exhibition offers a 'riveting riposte' to old cliches
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
'Musk's reliance on China draws rising scrutiny'
Today's Newspapers A roundup of the headlines from the US front pages
By The Week Staff Published
-
Biba: the story of a 'legendary emporium'
The Week Recommends Brand's 60th anniversary is being marked with retrospective celebrating the 'iconic shop's cultural importance'
By Adrienne Wyper, The Week UK Published
-
Puffed rice and yoga: inside the collapsed tunnel where Indian workers await rescue
Speed Read Workers trapped in collapsed tunnel are suffering from dysentery and anxiety over their rescue
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
More than 2,000 dead following massive earthquake in Morocco
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Mexico's next president will almost certainly be its 1st female president
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
North Korea's Kim to visit Putin in eastern Russia to discuss arms sales for Ukraine war, U.S. says
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Gabon's military leader sworn in following coup in latest African uprising
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstances
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governor
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published