Yes, you can have the wedding and reception of your dreams during the pandemic. It just takes some extra planning and, to help, here are some wedding planning tips to consider and questions to ask your venue of choice. Overall, the questions include those about masks and social distancing, sanitization, and meal planning.
If you’re ready to talk specifics about your plans and how you can have a wedding and reception during COVID, just contact us online.
Thrasher-Horne COVID Policies
Even before COVID-19, our number one priority has been the health, safety, and well-being of the guests who attend our events, staff members, and business partners. During the challenging times of COVID, we have made adjustments that allow us to continue to meet customer needs while mitigating against the spread of the COVID virus. As new information comes to us, we will continue to build upon these safety plans.
Here’s more information about our COVID policies.
Wedding Planning Tips For Covid-19
If COVID hit after you’d already started your wedding planning, check-in with each of your vendors, from the caterer to the photographer and more, to find out how they’re providing services during the pandemic. Do any tweaks need to be made? What about any backup plans? For example, a florist may not be getting the exact same flowers, or in the same quantities, as they could before COVID. What sort of cancellation policies does each of these vendors have? Is your money fully refunded, if they can’t fulfill your order?
Also, think about your guest list and the places from which they would be traveling. Will hotels still be able to accommodate all of them? Keep your guests in the loop about any issues that may affect their plans.
When it comes to a wedding venue, there are several issues to look into. Here are some specifics.
Masks and Social Distancing
Ask each venue what the mask requirements will be for guests, and also find out what the wedding venue requires for its employees during your event. All of our Thrasher-Horne Center staff must wear the appropriate personal protective equipment and all guests must wear masks/coverings when in any of the St. Johns River State College campus buildings.
Also ask what ongoing safety measures are in place for staff. For example, do they have their temperatures checked when they arrive at work each day? Do they wear masks regularly, not just when events are taking place?
The layout plan, as far as tables and chairs, should allow for effective social distancing. So, ask the wedding venue what creative floor plans they can implement. What kind of spacing will that create? How can social distancing be maintained during times when people are moving around the room?
Thrasher-Horne Center is exceptionally well-positioned to create customized layouts, something we’ve been doing for many years. Our center features more than 6,260 square feet of space in five multi-purpose banquet rooms. Four of them have movable wall partitions, which allows us to create larger rooms—which can therefore facilitate effective social distancing.
Our team can share multiple table and chair/floor layouts for your wedding reception venue. You can choose what will work best, so we can create exactly what you want and need for your big day, and the rental fee will include furniture setup and breakdown. Plus, we will set up socially distanced floor markings to manage appropriate movement control.
Sanitization
This topic is crucial during COVID, so ask questions about how the wedding/reception venue will keep everything sanitized. Will there, for example, be hand sanitizing stations located throughout the facility? How often are restrooms cleaned? What other protocols have been put into place?
At Thrasher-Horne Center, we have hand sanitizer available throughout our center, and we encourage guests and staff alike to frequently wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds and to avoid touching their eyes, nose, and mouth.
In our restroom, every other sink will be closed to provide social distancing. Plus, a cleaning attendant will sanitize the restrooms at least once an hour—more, if necessary. After each event, our team will sanitize all touchpoints, from doors to tables and chairs, bathroom fixtures to microphones and headsets, railings, and more.
Food and Drink
During COVID, how will food and drink safely be served during the wedding reception? At our venue, we are pausing buffet style catering, with no platters or open containers of food being served, and no pitchers of drinks being provided. Catering options are either a buffet served by catering staff, individually packaged (boxed) meals or plated meals served by catering staff.
Limited numbers of people can be in the prep areas.
Book Your Date at Thrasher-Horne
Receive five-star service when you choose Thrasher-Horne Center for your wedding ceremony and/or your reception venue. Our surprisingly affordable venue has been chosen by hundreds of couples from Jacksonville and beyond, located on the beautiful campus of St. Johns River State College in Orange Park. Here is more information about our wedding packages, which can include rehearsal dinners, bridesmaid brunches, wedding receptions—everything from start to finish, whether that’s an intimate event with close friends and family to one held in our grand room.
Our professional on-site staff and event experts will go above and beyond to help you create memories that will last a lifetime, exceeding your expectations.
Besides the customized setups and furniture breakdowns that come with wedding/reception rentals, each suite offers sound and lighting that’s independently controlled, with flexible catering options (including the ability to choose your own).
Plenty of free parking is available, with easy facility access. WiFi is also available.
Whether you’re in the early stages of planning or have your date picked out and are ready to reserve the wedding venue, please call our Rental Coordinator at 904-276-6815, extension 2.
