LACKAWANNA COUNTY, Pa. — Rain on your wedding day is said to be good luck, but at the Country Club of Scranton, almost every wedding in the last year has been outside, so rain, like we have had this week, would not be a welcome sight for couples on their big day.
"I'm probably more excited than the brides are at this point to be able to run events indoors and use the space that I love working with, and I know really well," said event coordinator Laraine Birks, Country Club of Scranton.
With the state opening back up in less than a month, event coordinators in Lackawanna County are looking back on what the pandemic has done to the wedding industry.
"I think it's changed a lot. You realize you don't have to put as much into the ceremony as much a the party, so it's become a little more intimate," said Food and Beverage Director Sandi Brady, Elmhurst Country Club.
But in just a few weeks, those guest lists don't have to be quite as restricted.
"Oh, wow, this is really happening. Everybody is excited. Everybody is ready. I get questions daily about what I think it will look like, and I'm just guessing. But now we know," Birks said.
Capacity restrictions will be lifted on Memorial Day, May 31, and at the Country Club of Scranton, there are four weddings on the books for June.
"As the capacities lift, if they wanted to expand that list, within reason obviously as long as it's feasible to accommodate it, of course," Birks explained.
The staff at the Country Club of Scranton still expects to do most of the 2021 weddings outside, and at Elmhurst Country Club, couples getting married still want their guests to feel safe.
"They're still very concerned. We do still have some brides that ask that we still continue to serve their buffets which is easy. We can do all that for them," Brady said.
Masks will still be required at these venues until 70% of adult Pennsylvanians are vaccinated.