Story by Selena Legaspy
Staff Writer
The whoosh of papers, the pressure of names being etched on a piece of paper, and the arbitrary selection of two names who will soon “wed” is the beginning of this special time of year for Mrs. Carol Moak.
The senior’s wedding project has been a part of Bishop Amat’s curriculum since the very beginning with Mrs. Moak conducting this religion project for the last 20 years.
She said she wants students to understand that marriage is more than just two attractive people meeting and falling in love.
“It’s important to love and care for the person, but to also have compatible ideas about those aspects about your life,” she said.
Along with the mock weddings Mrs. Moak performs, she coordinates the couple’s honeymoon lunch and assesses the compatibility surveys that the seniors fill out.
Mrs. Moak said the survey is based on the ideas of God, religion, and family values.
“A lot of the time the students through this survey think ‘Wow this is someone I could really get along with’,” she said.
Through the seriousness of the project there is also a fun side. Individuals must purchase a gift for their spouses and exchange them along with an explanation of why it was chosen.
Seniors who partake in the project are exposed to how life would be when married. A sense of matrimony in a school environment is unusual to most, but Mrs. Moak feels it is important for Amat.
“They get an actual idea of what types of things are going to be important for them to look at in a future partner, and the importance of including God in this commitment,” she said.
Students seemed to get much out of the project as well.
“The marriage project is an interesting experience because it gives a simple simulation of the process of matrimony, and when done properly, marriage itself, is bliss in all regards,” Jeffrey Davis said.
Mrs. Moak has the most fun when it comes time for the hype of marriage to sizzle down for the seniors and all projects are turned in.
“Once I got a student who was dating a young lady pretty seriously, he approached me and asked for the compatibility survey so he could take it with her,” she said. “I think it’s pretty cool that he thought it might be helpful in his real relationships.”
