photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World photo

The drive-thru wedding ceremony includes a photo with the house or the property's barn as a backdrop. The bed and breakfast did about 75% of its business in wedding parties prior to the virus restrictions all but eliminating that business for the foreseeable future.

I always assumed drive-thrus were out of the question when it came to marriage planning, which is why the rehearsal dinner was in the dining room of the McDonald’s. But now, in this crazy virus world, drive-thru weddings might become a thing in Lawrence.

A rural Lawrence bed and breakfast that does at least 75% of its business via weddings is now offering a drive-thru ceremony. The owner touts that it will be safer than even a small ceremony at the county courthouse.

“No one will come within 6 feet of each other,” said Rob Phillips, who owns Victorian Veranda Country Inn with his wife, Beverly. “All the paperwork will be passed using a long stick.”

photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World photo

Beverly and Rob Phillips stand on the porch near the portico of their home, where they plan to host drive-thru weddings for people who want a fast, and low-contact ceremony during concerns about the COVID-19 virus.

Phillips isn’t kidding. Yes, he said the idea did originally form as a bit of a joke in his head while watching a television news story about a priest doing drive-thru confessions. But then Phillips started thinking about what a person has to do if they want to get married quickly. Normally, they go to the District Court’s office to get a marriage license, and then have to go back to the building on another day when a judge or other officiant is available to perform the ceremony.

That seemed like more exposure to a public building than necessary. If the happy couple can talk the local courthouse officials into waiving the normal three-day waiting period — which has been known to happen — the couple can get the license and have a ceremony without leaving their car. Well, assuming they have called ahead to the Victorian Veranda.

Unlike getting a Big Mac, the bed and breakfast, which is located just north of North Lawrence, needs a little bit of time to prepare. For one thing, Phillips, who serves as an officiant, has to make sure his wife and an employee of the inn are available to serve as witnesses. And then there are the flowers to arrange.

“We will provide … fresh flowers, as long as our garden keeps producing them,” he said.

The whole ceremony is done under the portico of the 10-room Victorian-style house. Phillips said he’ll take a picture of the couple with the house or the property’s picturesque barn as a background. He thinks that will be part of the appeal of his new niche business. People who want a quick wedding may still want a bit more ambience than a courthouse provides.

Phillips said he doesn’t plan to charge any set rate for the service. “But gratuities will be cheerfully accepted,” he said.

He figures the ceremonies might lead to some additional business down the line. Once restrictions are lifted on public gatherings, couples may want to have wedding parties, and they may choose to have them at the place where they used the drive-thru lane on their wedding day.

“I guess we are just trying to position ourselves for more business when it becomes possible,” Phillips said.

Phillips said he is fearful the hospitality industry is going to be miserable for a while.

“I think there will be a ton of failures,” he said.

Phillips has had the Victorian Veranda Country Inn, 1431 North 1900 Road, for nearly 21 years. But he has been in the hospitality industry since the mid-1980s, dating back to the days when he was an owner of The Eldridge Hotel in downtown Lawrence.

He was in business during the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, and remembers well what that shock did to the travel industry.

“I’m 76 years old. I don’t want another 9-11,” he said. “I had time left to get life straightened out after that. I don’t have that type of time now.”

Phillips said he thinks the industry will be looking for all types of ideas to survive the downturn. On Friday, he and Beverly already were in the process of applying for the loan program for restaurants and hospitality business that the state had announced just hours before.

Beverly said the website was operating extremely slowly, presumably because of the number of businesses accessing information on the loan program.

Maybe this drive-thru wedding business will help with the survival process. Phillips has come up with crazy ideas before, and some of them still can be seen today. While an owner of the Eldridge, he was the driving force behind the creation of the horse-drawn Christmas parade that continues to attract thousands to downtown Lawrence each December.

His goals may be a little less lofty on this venture. He remembers what he was thinking when he decided to give it a try.

“I thought,” he said, “why not. At least it will be memorable.”

photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World photo

The drive-thru wedding ceremony includes a photo with the house or the property’s barn as a backdrop. The bed and breakfast did about 75% of its business in wedding parties prior to the virus restrictions all but eliminating that business for the foreseeable future.