Leslie Davenport – Wedding Officiant

With her unique combination of sagacity, humor and love, Leslie Davenport helped us to craft a wedding ceremony that was beautiful, transformative, and sublime. A master of ritual performance, she provided a perfect combination of guidance, structure, and an appreciation for spontaneity, expressing the unique alchemy of our union while at the same time honoring our traditions and shared cultural heritage. Her evocation of the ancestors (softly calling out the names of departed loved ones, accented by the delicate chime of bell) was especially moving. Leslie helped us to devise rituals, symbolically expressing the interweaving our out two lives in a way that accentuated our marriage as a right of passage and a form spiritual initiation. A perfect combination of solemnity and celebration, she helped us create a deeply moving and soulful experience for our families, our friends and us. With great appreciation we offer Leslie Davenport our highest recommendation as a wedding officiant.
Brian Dietrich & Jay Redd

My husband and I were very fortunate to have come upon reviews of Leslie’s services on another site. All the other couples gushed over Leslie, and we knew we had to contact her. I emailed her immediately as our wedding was less than two months away. We were also getting married on a Monday and hoped she would be able to accommodate this random day of the week. She was quick to reply and mentioned she has a teaching obligation on Mondays in San Francisco, but would try to see what she could work out. In the mean time we set up an initial meeting via Skype. At the time we were living in Washington DC. We were nervous at first, but Leslie’s warmth set us at ease and it soon felt like we were chatting with an old friend. She explained her process and mentioned that she could help us customize our ceremony how ever we’d like. For us the ceremony is the most important part of any wedding day. We knew right away that Leslie was the one help us create something that we would remember for the rest of our lives.
She emailed her guide/​workbook for us to look over. It took us through the typical ceremony options, including all the necessary legal stuff plus special notations where we could customize and add fun bits. The guide was extremely helpful as we hadn’t the foggiest idea of how the sequence of a ceremony should go. We took a few days to going over the workbook coming up with ideas and questions for our next meeting. At this point we were unsure of Leslie availability, but within a few days we got the green light! Yay! In our second Skype meeting we went through the workbook, questions, and our ideas. We finally met with her in person the day before our wedding to go over final details. We didn’t have a ceremony rehearsal so we met at this funky little spot for tea. It was a wonderful and calming experience for my husband and I to break away from the wedding guests and just relax and chat with her!
Leslie’s presence is warm and inviting. Her delivery is soothing, and professional. It was so much more than «i do», and «kiss the bride». We were able to included a quote and poem from Dr Seuss, plus one of our favorite Led Zeppelin songs that was read by my husbands eldest sister. We had an afternoon ceremony that took place at Muir Beach Overlook on a breezy September day in front of 24 our closest family and friends. It really felt perfect… if «I do» say so myself.
I cannot recommend Leslie enough. If you’re looking for someone to preform a memorable and meaningful ceremony she is the one. She will care about you and guide you in creating a one of a kind moment that will represent each of you. I couldn’t have been happier with how everything turned out. Do yourself a favor and call Leslie. You’ll be glad you did.

She is very pleasant to work with and accommodates needs. I recently attended a wedding that was officiated by Leslie Davenport. I’ve never experienced a ceremony that was both so personally meaningful to the couple and professional withough being stuffy. Nearly everone I talked to said the same thing. I was surprised at how moving it was for the couple and everyone there.