FAQs

Question

How do I RSVP?

Answer

When we send out the invitations, we'll include an envelope. Send it back with an RSVP card by the deadline and you'll be good to go! Don't forget to include your title (Ms./Mrs./Mr.) and your name after the "M" on the response card.

Question

How should I dress?

Answer

While there's no strict dress code, we recommend cocktail attire or semi-formal. Please, no dresses in solid black or solid white--it's our wedding, not a funeral! Headscarves are not required for women at Saints Peter and Paul.

Question

Can I take pictures of the ceremony?

Answer

Please keep your phones and cameras on silent and put away at the church and during the ceremony. We have hired a professional photographer and videographer to capture those special moments, and we want you to be able to appreciate the richness of the ceremony. There will be plenty of time for photos at the reception!

Question

Will the ceremony be in English?

Answer

For the most part. Orthodox Christians love to do everything three times to represent the Trinity, so there will likely be a mix of Greek and English for different repetitions.

Question

Will there be Greek dancing?

Answer

Yes! They're easy to learn, and we want you to join! By far the most popular Greek dance at weddings is the Kalamatiano: https://youtu.be/6KiZDFcW4uI You may also want to know the Tsamiko, traditionally done by men but now done by everybody: https://vimeo.com/167155467 The Hasaposerviko is very easy: https://youtu.be/oa_7TDLAz1w?t=50

Question

Woo hoo, Greek wedding! Do people actually smash plates?

Answer

Not when they're renting them from a caterer!

Question

What's Saints Peter and Paul like?

Answer

Saints Peter and Paul (SSPP) is a Greek Orthodox church in Glenview, IL. After years of attending city churches, in the late 1950s a group decided they needed a suburban Greek Orthodox church. Jim Koulogeorge, Alex's late grandfather, hosted the first meeting to discuss a new church. He also named the church, believing that Peter and Paul were the greatest saints. The church was chartered on Annunciation/Greek Independence Day in 1960 and completed in 1964. James Economou designed the brick building with a simple exterior. The church feels open—the narthex and the nave are separated by large glass windows, and the iconostasis has broad gaps between the icons and very short gates. But among Orthodox churches, SSPP is most unusual for its pews, kneelers, and organ. Midcentury immigrant and first-generation Greeks wanted to assimilate to American culture. See photos: https://bit.ly/364BXXp As city-dwellers, we are members at both SSPP and Holy Trinity Cathedral (OCA) in Wicker Park.

Question

What's the Chicago Cultural Center like?

Answer

The land for the Chicago Cultural Center was donated by the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), a Civil War veterans' association. It opened in 1897 as the city's first public library. It was converted to a space for public art and culture in 1977, and hosts many free concerts and exhibitions. The cocktail hour will be in the Randolph Lobby. The reception will be in Preston Bradley Hall. Preston Bradley Hall is filled with a dizzying array of mosaics that include authors of, and quotations from, classic works of literature. (We think it's reminiscent of the Library of Congress' Jefferson Building, which also opened in 1897.) It also has the world's largest Tiffany dome, designed by Tiffany's "chief mosaicist," J. A. Holzer. We are so excited to welcome you to the "people's palace"!