AKRON, Ohio — Love is in the air, and the Akron Municipal Court helped couples celebrate Valentine’s Day by hosting off-site weddings at the Akron Civic Theatre.
Judge Jon Oldham married seven couples this Valentine’s Day at the historic location.
James Dixon and Ivan McMillen were one of the couples. They said having their ceremony at the Akron Civic Theatre made their day even more special.
“It is a little overwhelming. I mean it is so detail intricate,” said McMillen. “The history behind this place, I can’t help but think that is a positive sign for us in our marriage.”
Off-site weddings have been a tradition for the Akron Municipal Court since 2017.
Back then, they only hosted the off-site weddings on special days like Halloween, leap day and Valentine’s Day.
They starting hosting them monthly in May of 2021.
“Our courthouse doesn’t have much aesthetically to want to remember. It’s a court house,” Oldham laughed. “We don’t really have a ceremonial space inside of the courthouse. So this is a huge opportunity for people to get married off-site instead of the courthouse, and it gets to showcase amazing places in our community. “
The new Mr. and Mr. Dixon said they are grateful for this opportunity.
“If you want to spend that time with someone you need to do it, and don’t let anyone stop you.” McMillen said. “Here we are, a same-sex couple in the city of Akron and an area judge married us, and we have friends and family here. Everyone in the system has been phenomenal with their acceptance of us, so whoever you are, if you want to do it, do it.”
