MOSES LAKE - A license, a union, a life-long commitment.

The person marrying the couple plays an important role.

In Washington, people licensed as wedding officiants may perform

marriages anywhere within the state

MOSES LAKE - A license, a union, a life-long commitment.

The person marrying the couple plays an important role.

In Washington, people licensed as wedding officiants may perform marriages anywhere within the state.

A wedding officiant serves as a liaison between bride and groom during the ceremony. They can help couples fine-tune their vows or speak on behalf of them when words are lost.

Glenn Dart, 60, Soap Lake, has been a wedding officiant for ten years.

He said he's done about eight weddings so far, one of which was for his son and another for his friend's daughter.

He said the best part of marrying couples is the pre-wedding ceremony.

"I like to spend sometime with the couple before I marry them. I ask them to write or tell me something special about who they are going to marry," he said.

Dart recalled a 2008 wedding ceremony he officiated when the groom told him why he was going to marry his bride.

"He said 'you know, she makes me feel more of a man. She makes me feel better about myself, encourages me to do things and tells me she appreciates me,'" remembered Dart.

He explained that the groom's message was "one of the greatest things a woman could have a man to say about her."

Dart has been married for 35 years.

For Andy Grenier, 53, Moses Lake, the best part of being a wedding officiant is also the pre-wedding phase.

"What I enjoy the most is the counseling beforehand. The ceremony is a wedding; the marriage is what we want to count and last," said Grenier, who is a minister at First Baptist Church in Moses Lake.

He said he has spent 26 years marrying couples and done about 25 weddings so far.

As part of a couples' pre-marriage counseling, Grenier conducts six to seven talking sessions. They usually last an hour to an hour and a half.

Grenier walks the couple through the idea of marriage as described in the Bible and the practical aspects of marriage like raising kids and how to manage finances.

"How do you communicate those things to each other when you are 22 years old and getting married for the first time? Not every marriage is successful, but these sessions help the couple learn new things about each other," said Grenier.

He also gives the couple assignments to take home.

"Every couple has a different perspective on the required assignments. They don't really have a choice, they have to do the assignment. Couples often come back learning new things about their spouse and themselves. It teaches them how to maintain a good marriage, not just the courtship," said Grenier, who has been married for 30 years.