1,200 couples get married in free mass wedding rite in Lanao Norte town ThisIsOurMindanao
The newly-weds pose for a souvenir photo at the townhall of Lala, Lanao del Norte on Sunday, 20 March 2021. MindaNews photo by MARIVIC DAVIS
Yap said the Inter-Agency Task Force on COVID-19 allowed them to hold the wedding ceremony due to the town’s low-risk COVID-19 alert status. Virginia Yap, Everca chief executive officer, said they agreed to shoulder all the wedding expenses of the unmarried couples since their foundation “is all about helping women.”One of the couples who were part of the free mass wedding ceremony are Darius Ayongao, 51, and Ana Posadas, 43. They have been living together for 23 years and blessed with five children prior to the wedding.
“We really wanted to get married but financial constraints got in the way,” Darius said in the vernacular. “We were too excited that we woke up at 3 a.m. to prepare for the occasion.”