Sat 3/27/2010 3:46 PM

As you may know, in April we may celebrate 100 years of
weddings in our sanctuary, beginning with the society
wedding in April 1910 of Ruth Boericke and Ralston White,
performed by our first minister, Joseph Worcester.
It would have been a somewhat muted celebration, as
the groom's father, Lovell White, had passed away only
two months before.   This made Ralston the head of the
Tamalpais Land and Water Company, selling much of the
property in western Mill Valley.

Ruth Boericke was the daughter (among five other children)
of Dr. William Boericke and Kate Worcester Fay Boericke,
married on Nov. 6, 1883, by Joseph Worcester at 1329 Pine St.
Kate's name (mother's maiden name?) suggests she may
have been related to our minister.

In any case, Worcester and Dr. Boericke were obviously
close friends, as well as doctor and patient, as Worcester
showed Boericke a site in Mill Valley for the Boerickes to build
their summer home.

I suspect Dr. Boericke made a considerable financial
contribution to the building of our church.  He was a
leading figure among homeopathic physicians, and
his book Materia Medica is still available.  He also helped
found Hahnemann Hospital at  Sacramento and Maple Streets,
later Children's Hospital, and actually the couple lived across
the street from our church at 3221 Washington for a period
around 1922 when Dr. Boericke was on the hospital board.

Back to weddings:  I noticed this in the current Stanford Magazine's
Class Notes:  WEDDING BELLES.   In 4-1/2 years, Mary Gallagher, '75,
has attended some 400 weddings at [Stanford's] Memorial Church.
As Stanford's resident wedding coordinator, she wears many hats--
"part director, part coach, part counselor and part magician"--
to ensure that everything goes smoothly on a couple's big day.
During the high season from April to October, Gallagher might
have four weddings scheduled back to back on a Saturday.  "I think
Stanford is such a popular venue because everyone is welcome--
all faiths and backgrounds. We do blessings for civil unions and
same-gender couples," she told the San Francisco Chronicle.
The only requirement is a connection to the Farm [Stanford]...

We have been doing this for 100 years (the civil blessings for at
least 20).
				Nan Paget