Bruce did a GREAT job officiating our wedding in September. He was an absolute delight to work with. He offers a lot of content and framework for those who need guidance or ideas but also allows you to really customize what you want to be included in your ceremony. He has a very kind and calm presence. He knows how to officiate and makes everything very easy. He's a great public speaker, and the words he wrote for us were just perfect. We could not recommend him enough. read more

We were lucky enough to have Bruce as our officiant, and loved the entire process of working with him. Using his ceremony tools, we were able to customize our ceremony to fit exactly what we were looking for along with expert guidance every step of the way. He understood our desire to have a short and simple ceremony, but helped us to ensure that it was beautiful and meaningful. Bruce is a wonderful public speaker, and many of our guests commented on how much they enjoyed the ceremony. Most importantly, he is extremely responsive and is just a lovely person - we loved every interaction with him, and couldn't have asked for a better officiant! read more

Spirited Weddings - Officiants Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Bruce is an amazing officiant and public speaker. He was recommended to us by our photographer. He is very responsive and kind. He put our minds at ease throughout the whole planning process. We loved our ceremony and the additional words he included in it! Would definitely recommend him 100%!!! read more

Spirited Weddings - Best Officiant! - Officiants Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Bruce was an excellent officiant and speaker at our wedding! Since the beginning, he was such a pleasure to work with. We highly recommend Bruce for your ceremony. He was recommended to us by our wedding venue and we couldn't have been happier! We received a lot of compliments immediately after the ceremony about the wonderful job he did. read more

Bruce officiated our wedding in August. He was great to work with. Was always quick to respond throughout the planning process. You can really work with him to make your ceremony exactly how you want it and know what to expect. We received lots of compliments from our guests about him. Would definitely recommend Bruce to anyone. read more

Spirited Weddings - Officiants Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Bruce conducted our September 9, 2022 wedding ceremony. The process of working with him was wonderful, we learned about ourselves and our relationship through choosing all of the readings for each segment of our ceremony. While we chose the readings, and had read them many times, I found myself really listening to every word he said and enjoying the whole moment. After the ceremony, several of our guests asked how long we knew Bruce because it felt so personal to us and our relationship. In addition, we were looking for someone who could lead in some prayer, but also provide a non-denominational ceremony. Bruce's packet of readings that we could choose from provided us the perfect balance of everything we were hoping for in a ceremony. Thank you Bruce! - Margaret & Christopher read more

Bruce conducted our ceremony October 15th, 2021. From our first interaction with Bruce we trusted that he would do a great job. My wife and I were not disappointed! Friends and family commented on multiple occasions that our ceremony was perfect. Bruce was always prepared, organized and punctual. We would highly recommend him to anyone! read more

Spirited Weddings - Officiants Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

We immediately knew Bruce was perfect because of how flexible and attentive he was to what we were looking for in an officiant. We were nervous we wouldn't find someone that was non-denominational and could perform a wedding for a family that was very diverse. He handled the Iranian aspect of the wedding perfectly and knew exactly what to say for the people who weren't too familiar. We also loved how he had a template where we could pick and choose what we liked. He really helped make the ceremony feel like us and we are so grateful! read more

Bruce conducted our wedding in May 2023. Working with Bruce could not be easier. He wants to get to know you and he makes it his mission to make your wedding go off without a hitch. He gives you a packet of anything you could possibly want in a wedding and lets you design it yourself with his feedback. You cannot go wrong choosing Bruce. read more

We are incredibly happy with the decision to hire Bruce to conduct our wedding ceremony. He was professional, punctual, and went out of his way to really personalize our ceremony. Our wedding was last week and our guests are still raving about the ceremony and Bruce's message to us. Bruce's calming demeanor was so appreciated during one of the craziest moment of our lives. Our ceremony was perfect and we highly recommend Bruce!! Thank you again for everything! -Natalia & Andrew read more

Bruce was an excellent officiant for our May 2024 wedding. As many other couples mentioned, it was a great experience working with him for very similar reasons they noted. Bruce is professional, detail minded, and met with us twice before the wedding day to discuss the process. He was kind and thoughtful throughout, providing expert guidance and calming assurances with every step. He provided a terrific ceremony outline and a variety of recommended content, both religious and secular, which we used to customize our ceremony. We appreciated that we were also able to introduce a few of our own ideas/readings. I grew up in a religious environment, my spouse did not, and we were able to effectively craft a ceremony that we both loved and that also resonated with our guests. We received many compliments from our friends and family, who seemed very touched by the sentiments and specifically mentioned what a fabulous officiant/speaker Bruce was. We are so grateful to Bruce and are so happy he was available to help us celebrate our day! read more

We had initially booked Bruce for an October 2020 wedding in Chicago, but like many couples we had to push to June 2021 due to restrictions. Bruce was more than accommodating and kept in touch with us throughout the planning process. Not only was he extremely thorough, but he made us feel like we've known him for years which made it a no brainer when choosing who would officiate our wedding. Bruce brought humor and uniqueness to the ceremony all while making the planning process stress-free. We had multiple people approach us afterwards to the compliment Bruce on the way he ran the ceremony. Nothing short of a great experience all around - thanks again for everything Bruce! read more

Rev. Otto officiated our wedding which was originally planned for June and reimagined/ rescheduled for September due to Covid. Throughout the entire process, which involved many uncertainties, Bruce kept in contact and made himself available for planning with a calm energy. We appreciated the personalization of the ceremony to make it unique to us- spiritual, while incorporating aspects important to our families- Christian and Jewish. On the day of, Bruce was prompt and professional as ever. We received many compliments on his demeanor and his message. Many were surprised we had not known him long which is a true testament to his ability to connect with others. We are so grateful! read more

Bruce was great! We wanted to get married but the courthouse did not have any appointments so we called Bruce and he took great care of us!

Bruce was a joy to work with and guided us through creating a wedding ceremony that was unique and special to us. After an initial zoom call to make sure we were a good fit, Bruce allowed us to cut and paste our ceremony together, making it our own based on what truly fit us, our relationship and our backgrounds. The process was seamless, as Bruce provided many resources and ideas yet was open to new additions as well. On wedding day, Bruce was professional, sooo well-spoken, personable, sincere, and conducted the most beautiful ceremony for us. We received so many compliments! Thank you, Bruce, for playing such an important role in our wedding day. We appreciate you so much and will forever hold our wedding ceremony close to our hearts. We highly recommend Bruce to anyone looking for an officiant! read more

Bruce was extremely professional and accommodating! We had to get married in a different county due to the corona virus and Cook County being closed. He worked with us every step of the way. We had our family on zoom and it was a beautiful ceremony. I would definitely recommend Bruce! read more

We loved working with Bruce! He came highly recommended from a friend and after our first meeting, we knew he was perfect to officiate our wedding. He was so helpful through the entire process and very patient with our 1,000 changes! He was prepared, on time, very professional and fun! We had a beautiful ceremony! Thanks Bruce! read more

Bruce was an amazing officiant for our wedding earlier this year! He was easy to work with, capable, and flexible, allowing us to customize our ceremony in any way we wanted. Allowing us to personalize the ceremony made all the difference and was exactly what we were looking for. He also made the ceremony rehearsal itself a fun experience, efficiently leading the rehearsal while also providing advice for the wedding party for the day of (such as "walk slowly!"). We got compliments on the ceremony from many guests. Thank you Bruce! Would highly recommend! read more

Bruce is the BEST! Our ceremony was so wonderful and so memorable that people keep speaking about how great it was; The ceremony really set the tone for the wedding! Bruce is easy to work with and makes "planning" the ceremony a piece of cake. He also took time to get to know us and understand our needs. Every, single thing we requested was completed and in a fashion that was better than we ever imagined! Bruce is so good at what he does, that many people asked how long we had known Bruce (thinking it was several years!) Thank you Bruce for being part of our special day and making it a very memorable experience! read more

Bruce officiated our wedding on May 20 2017. Planning the ceremony and everything we wanted in it was a breeze with him. The first time he spoke to us, he got a little information of our backgrounds and how we met. Then he gave us a handbook he uses that has all sorts of options to select for the ceremony. It was easy to pick and choose what we felt was most important to us for the ceremony, and he had no issue accommodating some Filipino traditions into the ceremony that we wanted as well. Communication with Bruce was always easy, either by phone or email. His recommendations for things we wanted to add/remove/adjust were all very helpful to us in creating the ceremony that we wanted. Come rehearsal/wedding day, everything was smooth sailing. He made the rehearsal easy and quick. On wedding day, the ceremony went perfect and the words of advice and wisdom from Bruce were much appreciated both by my wife and I, as well as our families. Everyone at our wedding was extremely pleased with him officiating and we cannot recommend him enough! read more

Bruce was an easy decision to officiate our wedding. From the moment we met him, we felt at ease and comfortable with Bruce's demeanor and approach to our ceremony. Our guests were really impressed with how personal and special his message was and we loved how we were able to customize our ceremony to fit our level of religion and incorporating our family and guests. Bruce was easy to work with, communicative and is a true professional! read more

We can't say enough good things about Bruce. Bruce was incredibly flexible and worked with us as our wedding plans changed as a result of COVID. He took the time to get a sense of us and work with us to craft the perfect ceremony that embodied our perspectives on marriage. Specifically, while we are neither overly religious, we wanted to imbue a sense of spirituality into the ceremony while focusing on our values and commitment to one another. Bruce worked closely with us to strike just the right tone, and it turned out perfectly. We never felt any sort of pressure to make the ceremony less or more than exactly what we wanted, which is a big reason we went with Bruce in the first place. Bruce's calm demeanor and gravitas was exactly the tone we were looking for in an officiant. Plus, his vast experience conducting weddings gave us peace of mind that he could (and did!) address any issues that might arise during the day of. He coordinated the rehearsal and ceremony with ease and was an absolute pleasure to work with. Again - we really can't say enough good things about Bruce. read more

Bruce was incredible to work with throughout the whole wedding planning process. He made sure to make us feel comfortable and really got to know us as a couple which came through in the ceremony. He was so accommodating and arrived early to walk through a quick rehearsal day of. He also was so helpful the week leading up to the wedding making sure we had everything in order. After the ceremony all our friends and family commented on how great the ceremony was and how he managed to reflect who we are through it. We cannot recommend Bruce enough! read more

We had planned a big 200+ person ceremony with Bruce that was twice rescheduled due to COVID, so in the meantime we elected to have a small ceremony with immediately family in a backyard wedding. Bruce worked with us on the pivot and ultimately delivered a very personal and heartfelt ceremony. In our lead up meetings and on the day-of, Bruce was an excellent listener, taking our wants into account, and was incredibly professional. We'll never forget our special day and are so grateful that Bruce was able to play such a critical part in it. read more

Bruce was exactly what we were hoping for in an officiant! Once we decided to shift to an intimate ceremony we needed to find an officiant pretty quickly. Leading up to the ceremony Bruce was helpful, professional and responsive. He took our preferences into account and worked with us to finalize the script. Day of he came to our outdoor location early, put us at ease, and delivered a sweet and quick little ceremony that was perfect for what we were looking for. Thanks Bruce! read more

Bruce married my husband and I in July 2008 and he was completely wonderful to work with. We were looking for someone who would work with us to create a non-religious yet "spiritual" ceremony and would give us creative control yet provide a warm presence for our very intimate wedding. Bruce was perfect. He has such a wonderful presence and is a delight to work with. After our ceremony our guest were asking us if we had known him for years and were complimenting us on how heartfelt the ceremony was. Several guest were so impressed with Bruce that they stated that he was the best officiant they had seen. I very highly recommend working with Bruce Otto for you wedding. He really is a joy to work with and I am so happy that we found him. read more

I'd seen Bruce on Yelp and Wedding Bee before choosing him to be our officiant this past weekend. I saw his profile and for some reason, got it in my head that he looked super nice, friendly, and would definitely be our officiant. I was right. He was definitely super nice and very friendly. I liked him immediately. We had originally talked about going with the shorter 5-8 minute ceremony ($350), but when I thought about it (okay, I asked my mom and my MIL also), I knew I wanted to do the longer ceremony (15-20 mins or so and $600). It was definitely the right choice. Like Michelle, we don't really have any religious affiliation and I worried it might be hard for us to figure out what to say in the ceremony. It really wasn't. He put together an extremely helpful booklet for us and we were able to pick and choose what we liked for the ceremony. Bruce is very well spoken (as another reviewer stated) and had the perfect volume for our 30 guest ceremony. We had very little time to work out all the details (we were engaged for a little less than 3 months when we got married), but Bruce made time for us in his already busy schedule with no problem. We really appreciate all the help he gave us and would gladly recommend him to anybody looking for a wonderful and very personalized ceremony. Thanks Bruce! read more

When my wife, Alison, and I started planning our wedding, we had a fairly specific vision. And as we began the planning stages, it became clear that having the right officiant was of paramount importance. After finding Bruce through yelp, we were excited to meet him and had great hopes he'd fit our vision. He did not disappoint. From the start, he was very warm and understanding. His process was awesome, and in going through his "buffet" of ceremony options, we easily came up with a ceremony that would've taken us ages to do on our own, but at the same time, we were able to truly make it personal and very much "us." When the day came, Bruce delivered. The ceremony was beautiful, and Bruce conducted himself in a way that made both Alison and I very comfortable. There were times when it felt like it was just three friends having a conversation. So much so that many of our guests commented that it seemed we had all known each other for years. We could not be any happier with Bruce and feel so fortunate we chose him to oversee our very special moment. read more

If you are looking for someone to officiate your wedding, look no further than Bruce! His process of helping us with our ceremony was organized and really well done. He is a total pro and helped everyone at rehearsal with any questions and feeling calm going into the next day. We received so many compliments about how lovely our ceremony was not only for us but what a great message Bruce had for the entire crowd. We truly cannot say enough good things about him! read more

Bruce married my wife and me this past August. He was better than we could have hoped for, he kept things relaxed throughout the entire process and was very flexible about how the ceremony ran. The most striking thing was that people really responded to what he said during the ceremony. During the reception several people came up to me to say how great the ceremony was and how special Bruce and his words were. I cannot imagine a better officiant for a traditional marriage like ours and I noticed he got lots of good reviews for non-traditional weddings as well...so either way you win. read more

Planning our wedding ceremony was such a delight once we had found Bruce to guide us. As a couple who is not committed towards a specific religious affiliation, we were worried that we would struggle for a ceremony that was personally warm and meaningful. Not so with Bruce! He worked together with us right from the beginning to use only the words we were comfortable with and convey the meaning we so dearly hoped we could. Bruce has an amazing and unique quality about him, a presence that is a combination of warmth and charm and poise and genuine respect for the couples that he marries. At our rehearsal and on the wedding day itself, both our families commented on how they were moved by his words and impressed at his having gotten to know us that well as a couple prior to the wedding. His personal thoughts and inspiring marital advice were a wonderful start for us into married life, as well as a kind and welcome reminder to many of our married friends and family. Bruce lead such a special and joyous part of our wedding day - highly recommended! read more

Bruce was our officiant for our wedding last weekend and it was one of my favorite parts of the day. Not only was it because it was the moment i married my husband, but because Bruce made us feel so comfortable, supported, and understood. From the first time we met Bruce and all throughout the entire wedding planning process, he offered great advice, kept us on track, was very informative, and ensured the rehearsal & ceremony was smooth sailing. Guests came up to us after the ceremony and asked where we found him, asked if we previously knew him, even asked if he was one of our uncles! The ceremony was emotional, and he read right into that keeping a calm and cool steady voice throughout. It was a pleasure to work with Bruce and i suggest you look no further when researching officiants. read more

If you're going to get married, you want to get it done right. My soon-to-be-spouse and I had two big issues when choosing our officiant. (1) While my husband belongs to a church, he has only been a member since the age of 26 (30 now). It's also halfway across the country from where we got married. (2) We got married in a venue that does not permit religious services of any kind because they receive state funding. So our officiant had to be cool with not even mentioning "God" in the service. So Alex found Bruce on Yelp. Yelp to the rescue, once again! And you Yelpers steered us right. Bruce first met with Alex to get the ball rolling. Then Bruce sent us a very complete booklet to customize our service, and we were happy to see that there were many spiritual selections that were not explicitly religious. The completed service also, amazingly, described our relationship very well. We met with Bruce the week before the wedding at his home to go over the ceremony. I noticed immediately that Bruce's presence is great. He is warm, calming, professional, and fatherly all at the same time. He's also a very tall man, and likely taller than you or your spouse. On a subconscious level, I think that adds to the calming feeling. We did not plan a rehearsal dinner, but at the meeting Bruce assured us that the ceremony would be really straightforward, and we basically just needed to follow his lead. Bruce also agreed to read a section that Alex and I wrote, at the request of my mother-in-law, telling our guests how we met. On the big day, September 18, 2010, Bruce came early to help guide guests to their seats. He also paid me a visit in the secret back room the wedding planners hid me in, just to see how I was doing. First, I was impressed that he found me in the first place -- I didn't even know where I was! Second, it was just a really nice touch. I was definitely overheating under the dress and worried about Alex's wedding present going off well, so hearing that extra, "It's all going to be alright," really helped. The ceremony was beautiful and our guests agreed. Bruce was just perfect, and I would recommend him to anyone for their wedding. We just followed his lead, and it all went great. read more

When we were looking for an officiant for our wedding, we had no idea how to start the search. We asked around to some friends who got married in Chicago and then starting looking on the usual wedding sites but it was all very overwhelming. Then I decided to look on yelp and came across Bruce Otto. We set up a call (we currently live in NYC so planning was all done remotely) and after our chat with Bruce we knew we had found the right person to marry us. And we couldn't be happier with our decision. We did the bulk of the planning via email which ended up being a very smooth process. Bruce provided us with so many options to choose from that we were able to customize a ceremony that matched who we were as a couple. We got to pick and choose exactly what we wanted and made tweaks when we needed to. The end result was spot on to what we wanted for the ceremony. A few weeks before the wedding we made a trip back to Chicago to meet with all of our vendors. Bruce was very accommodating and was willing to working around our schedule so that we could meet in person and walk through the ceremony (thank you again for that). The meeting went great - Bruce is such a veteran when it comes to weddings that he ran us through the day in no time and was so thorough that we hardly had any questions. Then on the BIG DAY, the ceremony was beautiful. Bruce did an amazing job making our vision a reality. Many of our guests came up to us throughout the night to tell us how much they loved our ceremony. We couldn't be happier! Thank you again Bruce for everything. read more

My now-husband and I both consider ourselves more spiritual than religious, so we knew finding an officiant for our wedding could prove difficult. We came across Bruce's name on The Knot, and after one phone call we knew he was the right man for the job. Pros: If you have no idea where to start regarding your wedding ceremony, Bruce is definitely the right officiant for you. He provides a very well laid out and thorough planning packet that you can tailor to your personal tastes. That said, we both had some traditional elements we wanted to include, as well as some personal readings, and he was not only open to including them but also had great suggestions on where to include them. We didn't get a chance to meet Bruce until a few days before the wedding, but we were instantly comfortable with him - he is very positive and warm. After just that one meeting, he tailored a homily to my husband that had everyone asking us how long we had known Bruce. Our guests thought we had known him for years, and we heard nothing but compliments on how moving and touching the ceremony was. Cons: None, really. :-) Bottom Line: Easy to get a hold of, easy to talk to, incredibly helpful and experienced. Bruce tailored a personal and spiritual ceremony for our wedding, and we cannot say enough good things about him. read more

It's hard to say enough good things. Thankfully the bevy of 5-star reviews on this site helps paint a pretty clear picture. If you're considering Bruce for your ceremony, and he's available, stop reading right here and book him. You will not be disappointed. My wife and I got married in Chicago this past fall, and used Bruce as our officiant. We are transplants from the East Coast, and as such didn't have a lot of contacts out here for our wedding. Although we are not an overly religious couple, we both recognize the ceremony as the most important part of the wedding. It was important to us to find someone who not only shared this view, but who also made us feel comfortable and 'at home'. This was a daunting task for us, but thankfully we found Bruce early (through Yelp)! My wife and I first met him in his home. He laid out the process in a no-nonsense manner, and demystified how everything would work. He really emphasized letting us have the ceremony we wanted, and does not push an agenda of any kind. Spirituality is very personal for my wife and me (as with most people), and Bruce was extremely accommodating and flexible in this regard. Based on this, as well as his warmth and professionalism, we decided to book him. He then mailed us a book showing different suggestions for how the ceremony might go. Bruce made it very clear that nothing was set in stone, and anything could be changed. This really made the process a lot less intimidating, and again allowed us to come up with a ceremony that we wanted. Bruce makes it extremely clear that he will run your ceremony. Well it turns out we didn't do a great job designing our ceremony at first. I think our original script called for him saying 'may you' at the start of a sentence about 17 times in a row! He was so gracious throughout the process as we maintained a dialogue tweaking and perfecting the ceremony. At the end, thanks to Bruce's help, we came up with something we loved. On the day of the wedding, Bruce exuded professionalism and grace. He was a calming force in our pre-wedding chaos and really looked out for both of us. He did a beautiful job with our ceremony, which can only come from the warmth and wealth of experience that he possesses. Our guests gave us many compliments on Bruce, and we couldn't be happier that we chose him for our wedding officiant. Are you still reading this? Go book him! read more

What can we say about Spirited Weddings and Bruce Otto that hasn't already been said. Bruce is an amazing man who gave our ceremony the time, attention, and care that it deserved. Bruce took the initiative to get to know us and was meticulous in helping us design our ceremony to be everything we wanted it to be. He is an absolute professional and we would have felt lost without him. We learned a lot from him and look forward to utilizing his marital advice. We received numerous compliments on the ceremony, including his spoken words, the tempo of the ceremony, and that the length was just right. He represented us and our families in the most commendable way possible. We would give Bruce our highest recommendation. Zach & Katie read more

Bruce was an amazing officiant for our wedding! We were so happy when we found him, and he absolutely lives up to all of his perfect reviews! He has a very calming demeanor, is extremely organized, and made the whole process extraordinarily easy. He was very flexible in allowing us to create a personalized ceremony that worked for us. Multiple people told us after the wedding that he was the best officiant they had ever seen/listened to. I can't imagine anyone doing a better job than Bruce. read more

Bruce officiated our wedding in August and he was wonderful! We were looking for an officiant for a non-denominational ceremony and found him from reviews online. From our first meeting we really felt that he took the time to get to know us, our story, and what was important to us on our wedding day. We really appreciated that! He was really organized and had a ton of material for us to choose from, but also let us customize as much of the ceremony as we wanted. He has so much experience he really helped us with all the little details of the ceremony. He led our rehearsal and performed our ceremony perfectly. We received so many compliments on how beautiful our ceremony was. We were so happy with Bruce and would highly recommend him!! read more

Bruce was incredible. He was very organized, and helped up every second of the way and was always there to answer any questions we had. He did an excellent job at the rehearsal and nailed the wedding. I would highly recommend him to anyone looking for an officiant. Thank you Bruce so much for making our day so special. read more