Couple Weds in Last-Minute Hotel Ceremony After Snowstorm Cancels Their Original Plans

Against every obstacle, Lisa Scurlock and Peter Mazza still made it to the altar.

The Washington, D.C.-based couple originally planned an August wedding in Rhode Island. But they changed plans after Scurlock’s father, Jim, was diagnosed with glioblastoma — the same aggressive brain cancer that her sister, Kate, died from last year, according to WCVB Channel 5 Boston.

Their next plan was a small City Hall ceremony with family on Monday, Jan. 26. That, too, fell apart when the week’s snowstorm forced closures across Boston. Mayor Michelle Wu declared a state of emergency ahead of the forecasted winter storm, and Boston City Hall and other municipal buildings were closed on Sunday and Monday, according to the City of Boston.

So the couple pivoted again — to a last-minute, intimate ceremony inside the Renaissance Boston Seaport Hotel on Sunday, Jan. 25.

Surrounded by their closest family and friends, the wedding became a tribute to Kate’s mantra: “choose joy.”

“We’ve had so many ups and downs,” Scurlock’s mother, Patricia, told WCVB Channel 5 Boston. “And to have a day like this for her… She had a perfect day, and everything was so beautiful, and if I had 10 daughters I’d want a guy just like Peter for every one of them.”

Scurlock added that the storm ended up making the moment even more memorable: “It was great, and as the day’s gone on, the beautiful snow, it’s just been such a cool memory altogether.”

The couple also told the local news station they were grateful their vendors pulled together on short notice to make the wedding happen.

“When the world is tough right now, and there are some tough times in our country, it’s awesome to see that people still care about other people,” Mazza said.

After the ceremony, everyone swapped formalwear for tailgating gear and headed out to watch the New England Patriots defeat the Denver Broncos 10-7 in blizzard-like conditions in the AFC championship game.