Love Knows no Borders
Kerry-Ann Chen and Jason Rin exchanged vows on Saturday, August 1, 2009 at the St Joseph Catholic Church, Miami Beach, Florida. Kerry-Ann is the daughter of customs broker William Chen Jr and his wife Carmen and the granddaughter of Bunny Chen, who is well known in the Jamaican-Chinese community, while groom Jason is the son of Arman and Evelyn Rin of the Philippines.
Over 300 of the couple’s family and friends travelled from Jamaica, Canada, Taiwan, Holland, the US Virgin Islands and several areas of the United States to witness the event that fused Kerry-Ann’s Chinese-Jamaican culture with Jason’s Filipino background. The couple live in New York where Jason works in film as a production co-ordinator and Kerry-Ann is a certified public accountant.
The Proposal
Bride Kerry-Ann shared with Vows Jason’s romantic proposal that took place while they were on a tramcar in New York. “We were on our way to Chinatown to meet our friends and I noticed that Jason was pacing nervously, and I thought that he was just hot from the summer weather. As the tram was ready to depart, Jason guided me to the exit door that ran parallel to the Queensborough bridge and he began to tell me how much he really loved me and that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. The next thing I see is our friends jumping up and down while holding a seven-foot banner across the Queensborough bridge which read ‘Will You Marry Me?’ Jason got down on one knee and popped the question and I said ‘yes’ and then immediately asked if he got permission from my father. To my surprise he had flown down to Florida previously and asked my dad’s permission in person.”
The Perfect Fit
With the help of her mother Carmen and her godmother Laurel deMercardo, Kerry-Ann went on the hunt for the perfect dress. “The three of us went to approximately six bridal salons in New York and I must have tried on over 30 dresses, but none of them felt right,”
Kerry-Ann told Vows. Finally, after watching the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards, Kerry-Ann fell in love with a Pogah Couture dress worn by reality star Lauren Conrad and immediately tracked down the designer. That done, mother and daughter flew to Los Angeles for a consultation with the designer who agreed to turn the dress into a wedding gown for her special day.
The Wedding Day
Coming from big families, Kerry-Ann and Jason chose to have a huge family affair, which took a year to plan. When the big day finally came, the bride arrived at the St Joseph Catholic Church, Miami Beach, with her attendants in a stretch Hummer after surviving, to her horror, a torn zipper. With the help of her godmother Lola Chen, hair and make-up artist Gregory Yap Sam and the resort staff, she was quickly sewn into her dress 20 minutes before the start of the ceremony.
Fully recovered from the ordeal, Kerry-Ann was simply radiant as she made her way down the aisle on the arm of her father William Chen in the modern V-neck gown complete with ruched strap and waist details. Her hair, styled by Gregory Yap Sam in a loose chignon, was pinned beneath a delicate cathedral-length veil of jewelled embellishments. Kerry-Ann carried a hand-tied bouquet that combined green lady slipper orchids, miniature green hydrangeas and ivory roses. Jason was smartly outfitted in a dark tux contrasted by an ivory waistcoat and tie, and a lady slipper boutonnière made to match the bride’s bouquet.
The wedding was co-ordinated by the bride’s godmother, Laurel deMercardo, and a team of decorators including Lola Chen and Christina Dumornay brought the clover-green, brown and ivory theme to life by incorporating delicate white and green blooms, swathes of luxe white and gold fabric and elegant accessories into the decor.
The full wedding mass officiated by Father Enrique J Estrada included a few Filipino traditions like the pinning of the veil and the placing of a figure-eight cord on the couple’s shoulders, which symbolises both unity and everlasting love. Arrhae coins symbolising the groom’s ability and promise to support his new family was also a part of the cultural ceremony.
And then there were 24…
The impressive bridal party included: maid of honour Gail Soares, bridesmaids Susan Tai, Leighann Chin, Tina Yeh, Ashley Seow, Rachel Rin, Jara Prather, Natalia Giordano and Cathy Losenara; flower girls Ella Huang, Gabrielle Seow, Caraline Rowlette; best man John Rin, groomsmen Richard Chen, Rodel Oiga, Young Lee, Bernard Rafael, Chris Chin, Chris Magpusao, Steve Parrish, Joe Rivera and page boys Michael, Ethan and Jayden Chen.
The bridesmaids wore clover-green dresses in different styles while their counterparts wore dark suits with matching silk ties and waistcoats with circus rose boutonnières for an added pop of colour.
Just Dance!
Formalities complete, the large contingent headed to the Deauville Beach Resort in Miami for the reception and enjoyed a cocktail hour that included: a sushi bar, stir fry and cheese stations decorated with unique ice carvings of wedding bands and a Geisha girl. After cocktails, guests were invited to find their seating cards hand-made by the groom himself, that were hung on trees decorated with lights and white butterflies.
As the bridal party was introduced, each couple entered doing a different dance. The bride and groom surprised guests by doing a choreographed routine to a mix of Hate That I Love You by Rihanna, Run This by Missy Elliot, My Love by Justin Timberlake and Fire Burning by Sean Kingston. This was followed by the highlight of the evening – the Chinese Dragon Dance, and the Filipino Money Dance. The Chinese Dragon Dance, performed by Wing Lung Kung Fu and Tai Chi Association, incorporated red and gold lions – symbols of power and good fortune believed to chase away evil spirits and bring happiness and longevity to the couple. Kerry-Ann and Jason also participated in the Filipino Money Dance, a symbol of good luck that had guests waiting in long lines to pin money on the couple before sharing a dance with them. The longer the lines, the more luck the couple is thought to receive.
Souvenirs
Guests received ivory square bowls containing Jamaican black cake with almond paste and icing created by the mother of the bride Carmen Chen and her godmother Lola Chen.
Honeymoon
The newly-weds spent their honeymoon in St Barts.
