With a little help from their friends

Davida Stein, of Lawrence, and Peretz Scheinerman, formerly of Manhattan, had planned to get married in their rabbi’s office and have a small dinner after — but her friends wouldn’t hear it. Instead, the couple’s friends and family banded together to supply the newlyweds with a “magical” day, at little cost to them.

Stein, a real estate title closer, said her business had gone down significantly during the recession and that she recently helped pay for her daughter's wedding. Scheinerman, a personal trainer, said he was also experiencing financial hardship.

When Stein told her friends, Michael and Susan Alon, about her wedding plans, they offered their backyard for the ceremony. “Why have a ‘City Hall’ wedding, when you can have one with your friends and family?” Alon asked. “If it’s going to be a nice summer day, why not have friends and family there? If everyone is a participant, it makes it that much more special.”

Around 70 guests attended and participated in the Aug. 30 backyard festivity. A guest prepared the flowered chupah (marriage canopy), while other guests contributed the food and drinks. The three-layered peach-colored cake, with peanut butter and marshmallows inside, was baked out of the baker's house, and not a local bakery. The couple utilized the internet for invitations. A guest paid for the DJ. The bride’s gown and the groom’s tuxedo came discounted, and the photographer, a guest, volunteered his services for the day.

“It was beautiful, I couldn’t ask for anything better,” Stein said. “It was like a fairy tale. The weather was perfect, the food was amazing, the guests were amazing. It was gorgeous.”

Another friend, Barbara Weichselbaum, also of Lawrence, stressed that what the group did wasn’t a big deal. “It’s something we’re doing for a close friend,” she said. “We love her and we love her future husband, and it’s the greatest pleasure.”

The couple, both divorcees, expressed their gratitude to their friends and family for making the wedding happen. “It’s humbling, but I also felt really touched on how so many people wanted to partake in it, then I saw how much money people are giving,” Stein said. “Everyone has been really amazing.”

Scheinerman said he didn’t know what was in store. “It was above and beyond what I expected, and I’m so grateful everything worked out well,” he said. “It was just a beautiful, beautiful evening. Everyone involved went above and beyond anything they had to do, and they made it a truly special evening.”

Stein said she would have been happy even without the ceremony. “We’re in love and we don’t care,” she said. “I’m happy sitting on the couch with him sleeping and watching the Mets lose.”

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