Officiants
The Bliss Package is Paully’s premium wedding officiant tier — a fully personalized wedding ceremony paired with four sessions of premarital counseling built on the SYMBIS (Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts) framework. Paul Richards is a certified SYMBIS facilitator, drawing on more than 30 years of pastoral experience and nearly four decades of his own marriage to help couples lay a strong foundation alongside the planning of their wedding day.
This is the package Paully’s long-time reviewers single out: “Paul guided us through the SYMBIS assessment and took the time to walk us through our results over five thoughtful and insightful sessions. From the start, he made us feel completely comfortable—he’s a great listener, incredibly thoughtful.” Couples who book Bliss arrive at the ceremony already knowing each other in a deeper way — communication patterns, expectations around money and family, conflict styles — and the ceremony script reflects what they’ve uncovered together.
As a best wedding officiant with two consecutive years of awards recognition, a 5.0-star average, and a 100% recommendation rate across marketplaces, Paully brings the same craft to the counseling sessions and the ceremony itself. He writes every script from scratch as a wedding ceremony officiant, so the ceremony draws directly on what surfaced during counseling.
What’s Included With This Package
- Four SYMBIS premarital counseling sessions — the standard SYMBIS arc covers communication, conflict resolution, finances, family of origin, intimacy, and spiritual life; each session is roughly an hour, scheduled at the couple’s pace
- SYMBIS online assessment review — Paully walks the couple through their results in the first counseling session
- Initial getting-to-know-you visit (in person or Zoom) for the ceremony itself
- The custom “homework” assignment that becomes the ceremony’s spine
- Fully custom wedding ceremony script — greeting, story, readings, vows, ring exchange, declaration of marriage; no templates
- Personalized vows coaching if you’re writing your own
- Unlimited email and phone exchanges throughout the engagement
- Pre-ceremony coordination with your planner, venue contact, and photographer
- Officiating the ceremony — religious, non-religious, interfaith, civil, or spiritual to your preference
- Marriage license signing on the day and submission to the county clerk on your behalf
- Backup officiant arrangement — associate officiant Gina P. is on the team for unforeseen emergencies
- Optional ceremony rehearsal the day before is available as a $120 add-on; confirm at the initial visit
Why Couples Pick the Bliss Package
The four counseling sessions are not therapy; they’re a structured, hopeful, and honest conversation about what makes a marriage work — guided by someone who has spent 30+ years walking couples through this and is married himself. As a ceremony officiant who understands the connection between the inner work and the outer celebration, Paully ties the counseling and the ceremony together: by the time the wedding day arrives, the couple has done the kind of preparation that makes the script feel like an honest reflection of who they actually are.
Schedule and Lead Time
Bliss is best booked 4 to 6 months before the wedding date so the four counseling sessions can be paced rather than rushed. The initial visit for the ceremony itself usually happens either at the start of the counseling arc or just after the SYMBIS assessment is reviewed. Paully typically responds within 24 hours and confirms availability after the first call.
Service Area
Counseling sessions are held in person in the Salinas / Monterey area or by Zoom — couples in Paso Robles, Santa Cruz, and farther afield are welcome to do counseling fully by video. Ceremony travel within Monterey County is included; ceremonies in Paso Robles, Santa Cruz, or elsewhere on the Central Coast are quoted with a transparent travel adjustment during the initial visit.
About Paully’s Credentials
Paul Richards is a retired pastor of more than 30 years, a certified facilitator of the SYMBIS (“Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts”) premarital education program, married for nearly four decades, and recognized two years running for excellence in personalized wedding ceremonies. His 5.0-star average and 100% recommendation rate across the major wedding marketplaces where his work is reviewed are paired with 24+ years of officiating experience in the Monterey area — the kind of consistency that comes from doing this work over decades and continuing to learn from every couple.
