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Over-the-top Vegas weddings at Hotel Congress, and tattoo parlor nuptials — Tucson couples are tying the knot this weekend in memorable Valentine's Day ceremonies. 

On Saturday, Hotel Congress will transform its plaza into a Las Vegas getaway to give seven couples a  Vegas wedding experience complete with a classic vintage car photo op and an Elvis impersonator officiant.

“It's that fun rock-and-roll wedding where you're having a really good time, and you go, ‘you know what? Let's get married. Let's go to the chapel, let's get married by Elvis',” said Chris Monzon, director of entertainment and operations for Hotel Congress, and an occasional Elvis. “It's gonna be crazy, and it's gonna be fun.”

The hotel at 311 E. Congress St. hosted similar Valentine's Day wedding events between 2010-2014 and decided to revive the tradition this year.

“We've been trying to transform the Hotel Congress Plaza into a lot of different things, and trying to open it up to be more community oriented in that way, so we've had a lot of themed events,” Monzon said. “And that got us thinking about how we could turn our plaza into Las Vegas.”

The search for the lucky couples started in mid-January with a post on the hotel's Instagram page, and there was immediate interest. 

“We started getting people's love stories, and we interviewed people about their connections with Hotel Congress,” Monzon said. 

Athenia and Noah Andree, Hotel Congress’s own bar tending duo, are among the seven couples chosen to be part of Saturday’s shared ceremony. They will renew their wedding vows in front of their friends and Hotel Congress family.

The pair met in 2020 through mutual friends and hit it off instantly. “Our first date was a drive-in movie theater,” Noah said. “We went to go see Halloween on Halloween night.”

“We just immediately clicked, and got together and were like ‘oh, yeah, you’re my person,’” Athenia said. 

After five years together, they married in October of last year in a small, intimate ceremony at San Pedro Chapel. Renewing their vows at Hotel Congress, they said, is an opportunity to have those who weren't able to attend share in their special day and celebrate their marriage.

Noah has worked at Hotel Congress for 13 years, and Athenia for three years, and the hotel holds special significance for both of them.

“Hotel Congress means a lot to me for many different reasons, but for a very long time, my dad actually was a sound technician at Congress, so I've always had a personal tie,” Noah said. “And it was my first not-hometown job, after I moved here when I was 18.”

He said he’s grown close to the people he works with because many have been there alongside him for years. “Congress has this magic ability — if you really do belong there, you'll be there for a long time,” Noah said. “Half the people that are still there, I've known since I was 18.”

Athenia is a lifelong Tucsonan, and said Hotel Congress has always been the place to be, so she has many memories of the historic hotel.

“You'd go to Cup Cafe to eat some nice brunch,” she said. “When I was in high school, I would go to the club a lot to see a lot of concerts, see a lot of friends play.”

On top of that, the couple said the idea of a kitschy Vegas wedding fits their self described “tacky,” style, and their love of a mid-century modern aesthetic. For Noah, who grew up in Vegas, it is even more personal. 

“We actually joked about it when we were planning a wedding,” Athenia said. “We were like, ‘let's just go to Vegas and have Elvis marry us.’”

Athenia and Noah said renewing their vows at the ceremony is about more than just re-affirming their commitment to each other. 

“Having the vow renewal ... is kind of like a love letter to Hotel Congress,” Noah said. “Like, ‘thanks for having us for as long as you guys have, and all that stuff.’ Because, it does mean the world to us.”

“It's gonna be a fun, intimate moment, and I know it's gonna be full of love,” Athenia said. “Not just because it's on Valentine's Day.”

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For the Valentine’s Day ceremony, the plaza will be decked out in neon lights and plenty of hearts, Monzon said. And what’s more Vegas than Elvis?

“Elvis is going to be leading the band, and he's also going to be officiating the marriages,” Monzon said. “And that Elvis is going to be me.”

During the ceremony, each couple will walk down the aisle individually, then gather in a big congregation near the stage, where they’ll be married. 

“The actual marriages will almost be like a big mass marrying thing, where I go, ‘you get married and you get married and you get married,’ like Oprah giving away a car, except it's Elvis giving away eternity of love.”

Each of the couples will also get professional photographs, and a room at Hotel Congress for the night. 

“We’ll also have a 53 T-Bird on the property,” Monzon said. “The couples are gonna get pictures with the car, they're gonna get a picture on the roof with our sign, and then we're also going to be doing a champagne toast for anyone who's attending.”

And of course, it’s not a wedding without cake, flowers, and dancing. 

“It’s going to be a big celebration of love on Valentine's Day,” Monzon said.

Bridging two commitments

The only commitment that rivals marriage is a tattoo, says David Meek, owner of Art and Sol Tattoo at 2921 E. Fort Lowell Road.

In honor of Friday the 13th and Valentine’s Day falling on the same weekend this year, Meek is offering 13 couples an unusual way to solidify their commitment to each other, by marrying them in his shop and inking them with complimentary tattoos. 

“Tattoos and Friday the 13th are a thing that has been going on for years. It is good luck to get a 13 tattooed on you for Friday the 13th,” said Meek, who has been tattooing in Tucson for almost 19 years.

“I was like, ‘how can I bridge these two commitment ceremonies?' Something that you choose for life — a spouse and a design — and it occurred to me that I could totally marry some folks here in the studio.”

The idea was to offer clients a free ceremony, a free tattoo, and a ceremonial toast with Motosonora Brewing to celebrate their love and their relationships.

“It was just a fun idea, I didn't know if it would be serious or not,” he said. “As it gets closer, people are really digging it.”

His mission, Meeks said, is to be the most thoughtful tattoo shop in America, and he is honored to get to be a part of such a special day for so many people, and to create memorable experiences for his clients. 

“One of the couples that is coming, they said they're actually a client of mine, and they've had a bunch of loss and stuff that they've been going through. And the reason they want to do this here, is they've gotten a lot of tattoos here. They feel comfortable here, and this is kind of their escape,” he said. “So that was an instant, ‘oh my god yes, please come you guys, I'm honored.’”

“I think this is an opportunity for me to give someone a moment to share forever,” he said.