provides marriage services to inmates in the Texas prison system. It may not be the wedding of your dreams but we can help make that special Moment Memorable for you both. Things may seem confusing but we are here to help you say I DO. You can reach us via email at TexasPrisonWeddings@gmail.com and via phone or text at 281-399-9999. We look forward to talking with you soon.
www.TexasPrisonWeddings.com.
With weddings come tradition to bring luck and happiness. Texas Prison Weddings are no different, each has their own story to tell.
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Something Old
Something New
Something Borrowed
Something Blue
A 1993 penny to represent the year the groom was born
A special gift from the groom made just for his bride
A borrowed ring of 3 stones for past, present and future happiness
A beautiful bride dressed in a perfect shade of blue
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The family was there to greet Devon with bubbles filling the room as she entered the door. A small reception was waiting cake and even a special message on the mirror.
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"I'm really proud and grateful for my family doing all this."
It's good to have the support of family and friends when you get married, even more so when your new spouse can't be there with you at the moment. Many blessings and much luck to Devon and Austin on their journey.
The bride and I arrived at Connally 30 minutes early. We were told to come back at 5 minutes til ceremony time. We waited.
We went back only to be told that they had a power outage and were working with limited power from the generator. They said we could wait or reschedule. We waited.
About 30 minutes later, they signaled for us to come in. Brianna lightheartedly said, "third times' a charm"
Between coming early and the delay due to power outage, Brianna and I waited patiently about an hour.
However when Keidric and Brianna saw each other, it was all forgotten. Since no one objected, Keidric shared their Memorable Moment and are now man and wife.
From across the room, Paul noticed the most beautiful woman in the world.
Could it really be, LOVE at first sight?
It's usually the bride that's nervous or 'has butterflies' but not this time. Paul said that he was glad he came up the night before because he was so nervous he wasn't able to sleep.
Aurora and I met early at the corner store in Tennessee Colony. We discussed the ceremony and what to expect before going to the unit.
During the ceremony, Aurora would back away from the window. A chair was placed behind her which didn't help. Ms Smith placed Aurora's hand on the window to help steady her and 'keep her in place'. Israel and Aurora shared their vows or at least he did. She was soo nervous, her whole body trembled. If ever there was a bashful bride, Aurora took first place.
#TexasPrisonWeddings has several #ApprovedOfficiants available to help make that special Moment Memorable for your #TexasPrisonWedding
Rain or shine, can't delay
Nothing to stop us today
TDCJ Officiants were on the way
Open that gate and don't be late
Chaplain Packard has set the date
Rush hour traffic and rainy skies,
Sweet words from the groom and the bride cries
Kids like playing in the rain
as well as running the sun
but for a bride dressed in white,
the rain is not always fun
With two happy couples at Estelle and Vance
this TDCJ Officiant had left nothing to chance
But no music played for the couple's first dance
6/19 @ 8 am
Jo Anne had the honor of performing a Memorable Moment at the Vance Unit in Richmond this morning as Leta and Terry tied the knot. The groom hit his chest and he said he would 'speak the words from his heart'. The bride was so nervous, she chose to recite personalized vows written just for them because they 'they were perfectly worded and told their story well'.
6/19 @ 11 am
Mollie shared a Memorable Moment at the Estelle Unit in Huntsville as Amanda and François declared their love for each other. If Amanda looked down or away, Francois would say, "Let me see that beautiful smile". When he spoke, she cried. When she spoke, he teared up. By the time it was over, Mollie was in tears as well and there didn't seem to be a dry eye in the place.
Jo Anne Hall officiates jailhouse weddings in the Texas prison system. When an inmate wants to marry someone on the outside, Hall is one of a small handful of people who have been approved to do the honors.
The 59-year-old Humble resident has two sons currently locked up in Texas prisons, so she has a familial knowledge of prison life and the strains it places on those on the outside while family members do time on the inside.
Back in January, Hall applied to officiate wedding ceremonies in the prison system. So far she has one wedding under her belt.
On March 17, Hall wed Adam Rubio and Ginger Fisher. The bride was sentenced to 30 years in prison in 2011 for stabbing a police officer outside of a bowling alley in Baytown three years prior. According to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice website, she has no scheduled release date.
Rubio and Fisher were married at the Murray Unit in Gatesville.
“I’ve made myself available to any unit except the Wynne Unit in Huntsville as that is where my son is and the warden has said that I cannot perform marriages there,” says Hall. Marriages are open to any unit and eligible inmates.
Spokesman Jason Clark with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice said Thursday that a new inmate wedding policy changed in mid- January.
Before the change, incarcerated offenders in Texas had only married by proxy. However, Clark says, state law has changed, permitting a proxy when applying for a marriage license but not for the marriage ceremony itself.
“Given the restrictions and understanding offenders have a legal right to marry, the agency has approved a policy that allows an inmate to marry a non-incarcerated person within our facilities,” Clark says.
So far Clark says that at least six inmates have taken advantage of the rule change and wed in a TDCJ facility. Wardens, in part, help make the decision whether or not to approve or deny the request for a marriage in the visitation area. A unit chaplain handles the scheduling of the wedding.
Marriages of course must be in compliance with an inmate’s visitation rules. Ceremonies should be consistent with the offender’s visitation status, and there will be no special amenities, he added.
“There are no decorations or other items that may jeopardize security allowed. Also, if the offender is not eligible for contact visits, sitting at a table, they will be separated by glass,” says Clark. Weddings are not to be performed in the prison’s chapel area. Two days are set aside per month by each unit to accommodate weddings. Services are capped off at 30 minutes.
In Texas, prisoners have never been allowed conjugal visits, so consummation made need to be put off until a later date. Other states do allow them though.
Spouses on the outside are responsible for obtaining marriage licenses and arranging for an agency-approved officiant, which is where someone like Hall comes in.
According to Hall she is one of four wedding officiants in Texas. The road to performing weddings in Texas prisons was not an easy one, she says.
While looking for a way to reach out to other people like herself coping with a loved one on the inside, she found the Texas Inmate Families Association (TIFA) group on Facebook. After that she formed a group of her own, Texas Inmate Birthdays, which sends birthday cards to inmates.
“Each ‘event’ is someone’s birthday. We all send birthday cards to everyone’s loved one and in turn ours will receive many cards too,” says Hall. One of her sons received five cards from people he didn't even know.
“These people have become family and our loved ones are currently receiving about 20 cards each,” she says. She later started another group just for the parents of those who are in incarcerated.
When the TDCJ announced that they were going to approve inmate marriages, she felt that that was her next calling. Her third group, TDCJ Inmate Marriages, was formed. Soon after this she signed up to be a wedding officiant.
The couples that she has met through the Facebook group have a variety of stories. Some are serving life sentences, some met while they were both incarcerated and got married after one was released. One couple even met while one was an inmate and the other was a guard.
The Facebook group is a way for people in the same situation to find others to lean on.
“Marriage is hard enough when two people live together and sometimes have long distance relation due to work. I cannot even imagine this,” Hall says. Some are fortunate though that if eligible they can make phone calls home. Ignite with Tabatha aired at 5 PM Sunday, September 13, 2015
Saying 'I do' from prison used to be a difficult task, but thanks to a local woman, many are able to tie the knot from behind bars.
"Some (couples) I can look at them and it brings me joy to do what I'm doing," Jo Anne Hall said.
Hall is one of the few officiants in the state of Texas that is allowed to conduct prison ceremonies. Back in 2015, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice made changes to its intimate wedding directive and allowed prisoners to marry someone from the outside. Those ceremonies are usually performed in jail.
"My heart feels for these (couples) because I've been on this side and it's not an easy life," Hall said.
Both of her sons have been incarcerated, with one currently serving a 25-year sentence. After years of visitation and traveling, Hall says she understands the stress loved ones on the "outside" go through.
Whether inmates are in jail for theft or murder, Hall said she doesn't ask for details. She says at the end of the day, it's up to the bride.
"She's the one that loves him, she accepts him for what he is, for what he may or may not have done," Hall said.
Hall makes jewelry for her brides, trying to make their day just a little more special.
"I feel happy that I was able to share in their memorable moment in their lives," she added.
The Prison Show90.1 FM KPFT Houston Friday, December 22, 2017
Season’s Greetings from The Prison Show! We have a HUGE evening planned to bring back the Prison Show wedding traditions. Tanika Solomon will co-host with Hank, Dave Atwood will report on The Death Penalty, Michael Allen will tell us about Christmas at the Jail, and we have an announcement from Parole Solutions.
9 pm – Opening with Tanika J. Solomon - 12 minutes – 9:12 pm
9:12 pm –Marriages by Memorable Moment – 15 min – 9:27 pm(on air vow renewal)
9:27 pm – Parole Solutions – 3 minutes – 9:30 pm
9:30 pm – Mike – 10 minutes – 9:40 pm
9:40 pm – Dave Atwood – 10 minutes – 9:50 pm
9:50 pm – Daniel - 5 minutes – 9:55 pm
9:55 pm - break song – 5 minutes – 10 pm
10 pm - Callers - 45 minutes – 10:45 pm
10:45 pm – no more holding – 10 minutes – 10:55 pm
10:55 pm – closing – 3 min – 10:58 pm
10:58 pm – PSAs – 2 min – 11pm
11 pm - Cultural Baggage with Dean Becker
Texas Prison Weddings is in it's 3rd year. We have helped make that special 'I DO' Moment Memorable for close to 200 couple and hope to continue for a long time to come. If Texas Prison Weddings helped make that special Moment Memorable for you and your One True Love, we want to hear from you.
Our Clients Speak
Brenda, Mother of Mrs Rubio “Thank you so much for everything and for helping us make it happen."
Zoila “My appreciation for Jo Anne, you did a wonderful job"
Texas Department of Criminal Justice consists of 106 units. Texas Prison Wedding officiants have been to at least 54 of them and can travel to all. Since March 2015, we have traveled over 100,000 miles along Texas roads performing prison and jail weddings.
A. Each unit shall provide two non-visitation workdays per month for offenders to be
married in the visitation area of the offender’s assigned unit. Any exceptions shall
be made on a case-by-case basis as authorized by the warden.
The date is set by the unit, not you and not us.
B. The warden shall designate correctional staff to be present for the duration of the
marriage.
Rarely but occasionally, the Warden and/or Chaplain may attend.
C. The unit chaplain shall be responsible for scheduling all offender marriages on the
unit and shall provide the warden with a list of all offenders scheduled to be
married each specified day for final approval.
The chaplain may meet with your LO to set the date, he will contact you then you MUST notify us.
D. Offender marriages shall not take place in the chapel. Offender marriages shall
take place in the visitation area or in an area approved by the warden, based on the
offender’s contact or non-contact visitation eligibility status, during non-visitation
hours at times designated by the warden. Offender marriages shall be scheduled
for no more than 30 minutes each.
On occasion, there may be a meeting in the visitation; the unit will assign another location for the ceremony.
E. There is no requirement for a witness at the marriage. The marriage event shall be
limited to the offender, non-incarcerated intended spouse, and the officiant.
Only the bride, groom and officiant are allowed; no visitors.
F. There shall be no special visiting privileges permitted in connection with or
immediately after any marriage. However, if the offender is contact visit eligible,
holding hands shall be permitted during the process, along with a brief embrace
and kiss at the end of the process.
In most cases when the ceremony is over, it's over; there is no 'visit' time.
G. Marriage between currently incarcerated offenders shall not be permitted.
This is clear, marriage is NOT permitted between offenders.
H. Attire of the offender, non-incarcerated intended spouse, and officiant shall be in
accordance with the TDCJ Visitation Plan.
Clothing that is tight fitting, revealing, or made with see-through fabrics shall not be allowed.
Sleeveless shirts and dresses are allowed, but must cover the shoulders.
Shorts and skirts no shorter than three inches above the middle of the knee while standing, capri pants, or long pants are allowed.
Wedding attire should have little or no cleavage, sleeves or a jacket and skirts should not be too short or tight. All units do not have the 'Gown of Shame' so we suggest you have back-up in your car.
I. The officiant may bring in one book or document.
Vows written by the officiant and/or the intended is considered a document.
J. Only items approved in accordance with the TDCJ Visitation Plan shall be
permitted to be brought in by the officiant or the non-incarcerated intended
spouse.
Keys and TDL and/or state ID only.
K. Non-incarcerated intended spouses may not bring in a wedding ring to be
exchanged with the offender during the marriage. Offenders are only allowed a
wedding ring at the time of intake in accordance with AD-03.72, “Offender
Property.”
We cannot stress this enough, there is NO ring exchange. The officiant may bless YOUR rings but you must wear it in and NOT remove it.
L. The offender’s spouse may purchase photographs after the marriage. Funds from
the sale of photo fundraising shall be handled in accordance with ED-02.04,
“Texas Department of Criminal Justice Fundraising.”
Pictures are $3 each just like in visit however most State Jails do not do pictures.
M. Upon completion of the marriage the spouse shall exit the facility.
The offender is escorted out after the ceremony and the new spouse as well as the officiant must leave the property.
N. The I-60 and Offender Marriage Verification Worksheet shall be placed in the
offender’s classification folder.
This is clear. Sometimes but not always, the unit may make a copy of the license.
O. The inmate records supervisor shall change the visitor’s status on the Family
Tracking Page and the approved Visitors List after completion of the marriage.
In most cases, this is correct. However some units will not make the change til a certified copy of the filed license is sent back to Classification at the unit.
