At 11 p.m. last Sunday, Stephanie Holler sat outside in her folding chair, typing away on her laptop, waiting for morning.
She was not seven months early to Krzyzewskiville, tenting for tickets to a Carolina or Maryland basketball game. She was outside the Chapel, awaiting the wedding registration that began the next day at 8 a.m. Holler was participating in a monthly tradition, in which couples can register on the first Monday of each month for Chapel weddings to be held that month of the following year.
Moreover, Holler, Trinity '99, was returning to the Chapel steps where she and her now-fiancZ
Holler thought it was necessary to camp out because June is a popular time for weddings and the Chapel has strict limitations on how many ceremonies can take place each month. Weddings can only take place Saturdays during four two-hour time slots beginning at noon, so long as there are no conflicts with University scheduling.
Wedding tenting, which Chapel Events Coordinator Mollie Keel said has been happening for three or four years, occurs mainly during May and June. Holler thought the competition would be so tough that she trekked from Connecticut, despite time and work conflicts back home.
"If you're from out of town, it is very difficult. Monday makes it very hard to camp out," she said.
Last month, Holler paid two undergraduates $50 to camp out for a wedding date because she and her fiancZ
"It's a good idea that they have an organization to it, but camping out.... I don't know," said Kristin Schroeder, Trinity '01, whose mother tented with her.
Perhaps the most common urban legend is that a couple must reserve the Chapel several years in advance because of its popularity. As the couples learned, this is not the case.
"It is a very unique site, something you never forget," said senior Megan Andrews, who tented with her fiancZ
A fourth couple, Danielle Tart and Benjamin Koren, whose father is a professor at Duke, also spent the night on the Chapel quad.
Another rumor is that the Chapel is free to Duke graduates within 10 years of graduation. In fact, the Chapel costs $1,260 per wedding, which includes use of the Chapel for two hours, a wedding director, an organist, a sound systems director and a parking guard.
Chapel weddings can also have their pitfalls. Photographers must stand 10 pews behind the last-seated guest because the noise made by the camera shutter can be distracting. Several couples expressed concern that this can prevent photographers from capturing the first kiss or the exchange of rings.
However, videotaping may take place from the side pews.
A couple must have some Duke affiliation to marry in the Chapel. Only alumni, full-time employees and full-time students can wed there.
"It's good [that the Chapel is restricted to Duke affiliates]. Otherwise you wouldn't be able to get it," Schroeder said.
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