She 'forgot' to hire an officiant for her wedding — so they made a choice that left their guests in tears
Weddings are planned to the last detail, the flowers, the playlist, the seating, and of course, the officiant. But when Zoya Biglary and Alix Traeger walked into their ceremony, they realized they didn’t want to follow the usual rules and decided to do something far more meaningful that left their guests in tears. The idea wasn’t sudden. As shared on Instagram on Sunday, November 23, 2025, it had begun weeks earlier when the two of them were discussing the wedding.
“When Zoya and I talked about who would officiate our wedding, she suggested we do it ourselves,” Traeger shared on social media. “Who better to speak about our love than us?” It felt bold, maybe even a little unconventional. Traeger hesitated at first, wondering, "Is that even allowed?" Then came the realization that changed everything: “It’s our wedding. We get to make the rules.” So instead of assigning the role to a stranger or even a close friend, they chose everyone. All the people whose love had shaped them into who they are today. They decided the only right officiant would be the collective crowd that had walked each chapter with them.
On the day of the ceremony, they let the guests believe something had gone wrong because there was no officiant in sight. A moment of confusion passed through the crowd before Traeger and Biglary revealed the truth: they weren’t missing an officiant; they didn’t want one. The people present weren’t just witnesses but also facilitators of the wedding. This ceremony was the couple’s "love letter" to their people.
Love poured in from the social media users as the idea hit the right chord. @beagalexander wrote, “Just a stranger here, but these snippets from your wedding are some of the most beautiful, love-filled moments I’ve ever seen. Thank you for sharing them with all of us. The joy, care, and intention in every detail give so much hope—especially to those of us in the queer community. Wishing you both a lifetime of the love you so clearly poured into your magical day.” @mama_____lee commented, "This is the most beautiful thing I've seen in a wedding." "How beautiful," remarked @babybean02.
The guests felt it too. “So many people told us the ceremony ended up being the highlight of the entire weekend. But somehow, in the middle of a weekend full of parties and noise, it was the quietest moments that were the loudest," Traeger said. It’s rare to see a wedding moment that makes even strangers pause. But perhaps that’s the magic of what Biglary and Traeger chose: a ceremony not centered around tradition, but around gratitude. Not about what a wedding should look like, but who helped love grow in the first place.
For more such content, follow @zoyaroya and @majortraeger on Instagram.