Couples lament the loss of wedding plans – or rush them through

The uncertainty of this week has thrown soon-to-be-married couples for a loop. Some had to postpone again, while others rushed to get in in time.

Couples who had their wedding plans thrown into disarray by the COVID lockdown are feeling a mixture of anger and relief that their big days can still go ahead.

Cherie Lucadei and Chris Panic had rescheduled their Kangaroo Island wedding within an hour of yesterday’s announcement that, from Sunday, weddings could again host 150 people.

The couple, who are parents to nine-month-old Elliott, will marry on Monday, after the lockdown forced them to abandon their wedding that was scheduled for today.

“Both Chris and I run small businesses … and it was so beautiful when we visited Dudley Wines (on Kangaroo Island) that we thought we’d get married there to help the locals,” Miss Lucadei said.

“I was crying yesterday because I was upset and crying today because I’m happy.”

She said most of their 64 guests would still be able to share in their celebration today.

Miss Lucadei said she felt angry at what had unfolded over the past few days.

“I’m mad that it escalated so quickly from someone not telling the truth,” she said.

She was devastated when the six-day lockdown was announced on Wednesday morning.

“I was actually having my hair coloured ready for the wedding and when they said weddings were cancelled I just burst into tears,” she said.

Cherie Lucadie and Chris Panic (pictured with nine-month-old son Elliott) are devastated after the lockdown quashed their plans to get married on Kangaroo Island on Saturday. Picture: Tait Schmaal.

Miss Lucadei said the blow was worse as she had planned to marry on her late grandfather’s birthday.

Mr Panic said the couple had been to Kangaroo Island several times and had chosen to marry there to help the locals recover from January’s devastating bushfires.

“We even had the conversation on (last) Saturday how lucky we were that we had not been affected by COVID,” Mr Panic said.

He said initially hearing his wedding could not go ahead had been “tough”.

“It’ll probably become a good story to tell as we get older,” Mr Panic said.

John Gronthos and his bride-to-be Natasha hoped it would be a case of third time lucky next Sunday, after two previous attempts to tie the knot were thwarted by the coronavirus.

When the Richmond couple’s first attempt to marry on April 4 was derailed by the initial COVID-19 outbreak, they set their sights well into the future and booked in November 22.

They then had the heartbreaking task this week of letting family and guests know that the wedding was cancelled – again – only to have the statewide lockdown wound back at the last minute.

“My head’s been spinning,” Mr Gronthos said.

“We had a beautiful wedding all set for April 4, with a honeymoon to America and The Maldives, and we had to cancel that.

“We probably lost about $4500 in deposits.”

The couple had lost money this time around, too, as a more modest honeymoon to the Whitsundays was scrapped due to border closures.

Mr Gronthos, 36, said the fact that he had to cancel a second wedding due to someone lying to contact tracers was devastating.

“It’s very disappointing, and we don’t really have any words for it,” he said.

“It does feel a bit like the world’s against us, but we’re still going to have a go for the 29th.

“We’re in the process right now of talking to venues, photographers – just trying to line it all up again.”

Lloyd and Gabriella Morris were meant to marry yesterday.

But, when the six-day ban on weddings was announced on Wednesday, they made a quick decision – they would marry in a matter of hours.

“We decided to put our love first,” Ms Morris said.

Lloyd and Gabriella Morris held their wedding on Wednesday. Picture: Lifesketch Films

The Balaklava couple secured suppliers, notified guests and wed in a “touching and beautiful” ceremony at Glen Ewin Estate at 7pm on Wednesday. “We would not have been able to achieve such a spectacular result without the suppliers and also the love and help of friends and family,” the 24-year-old said.

Meanwhile, the owners of a Newton gym are not wasting any time in giving their members the chance to get their workout fix.

Crystal Trace and her partner Patrick Morrison will throw open the doors to Strength Lab, in Newton, at 12.01am tomorrow to celebrate the easing of restrictions.

“Obviously our clients are very eager to return to the gym after having it taken away from them again this week,” Ms Trace said.

“They were all completely devastated and so as soon as we heard we could open we thought, ‘let’s have a gym workout’.” She expected about 25 people to turnout for the 40-minute bootcamp session.

Ms Trace said she felt confused as she listened to yesterday’s announcement by Premier Steven Marshall, about why the lockdown would be eased.

“We have just done so much this year and it’s been a nightmare,” Ms Trace said.

“We have had enough of it.”

But she said the events of 2020 did have a silver lining.

“It has really made the gym community so much stronger,” Ms Trace said.

Disappointed school leavers left at home

The lockdown lift has just added another gut punch to the Class of 2020, on top of cancelled events like formals.

The annual end-of-Year 12 pilgrimage to Victor Harbor was cancelled in September due to the pandemic but many school leavers were hiring camping spots and holiday homes for smaller gatherings.

More than 3000 bookings were made for Fleurieu caravan parks and beach houses.

Many of those bookings were cancelled after Wednesday’s total lockdown.

Now that 10-person home gatherings are allowed, school leavers are free to fulfil their bookings if they can. But for some, it is too little too late.

Many graduates, including 18-year-old Kate Woolford and her friends from St Mary’s College, planned well ahead.

School leavers Kate Woolford, Bianca Cappelluto and Tiana De Palo. Picture: Emma Brasier

“Most of us could understand the reasons … we needed this lockdown. But to then find out that it was all because some selfish person lied and ruined our final week … is infuriating to say the least,” Ms Woolford said. “There’s no point in going down for us, because we don’t know if we have accommodation still. All in all, it just sucks”.

Police Commissioner Grant Stevens has asked people to “consider the necessity for travel”.

Charity counting cost of shutdown

The lie that sent the state into lockdown delivered a cruel blow to those living with a fatal and incurable condition.

The not-for-profit Motor Neurone Disease Association of SA had to cancel its major fundraiser which each year generates upwards of $70,000 – or 15 per cent of its donation income. The Mile End organisation receives no government funding and had sold 280 tickets for tonight’s event.

MND SA chief executive Karen Percival said staff had worked “exceptionally hard” to organise the event, which had been rescheduled from August to tonight.

“We are the only specialist organisation in SA caring for and supporting people impacted by MND,” she said.

There is no cure for MND and average life expectancy of those afflicted is 27 months.

The association is launching an online silent auction to compensate for the loss of income.

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