Love's final farewell

"It's bittersweet because it is my last wedding here. I was married here myself," said Tairie Starr, who has presided over 2,000 weddings at the Chapel of Love over the past 15 years. The chapel at the Mall of America closed on Sunday after 28 years and over 8,000 weddings and vow renewals. The business shut down after the wedding of Andrea and Samuel Price, which was scheduled before owner Felicia Glass-Wilcox and Starr knew the end was here.

While the Chapel of Love may have been ridiculed in its nascent days, the business has become an important part of wedding lore in Minnesota, judging by couples who visited the chapel after its closing was announced to recount their own matrimonial memories there. "People have been coming and sharing their stories. You really have an impact on the community," said Starr.

Part of the attraction, she said, is a churchlike atmosphere for those who don't belong to a congregation. Starr, an ordained minister, added a touch of spirituality to her services. Along with the expected vows, Starr used a prayer that contains the line "give them enough tears to keep them tender." With that kind of earnestness, the Chapel of Love blessed thousands of marriages whose stories are still being written.