A 2016 wedding at Baker Events in Holland.
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A federal lawsuit filed on behalf of a young Byron Center couple and the Holland venue where the wedding was planned for Friday.
The hope is the lawsuit will answer the question asking: Is a wedding and reception a religious service that should be exempt from the governor’s executive order limiting gatherings?:
Baker Furniture Warehouse, 217 E. 24th St. in Holland, has warehoused the products of the premier furniture manufacturer for over 100 years. Today, the warehouse it is a venue for receptions and parties known as the Baker Group.
According to a federal lawsuit, the warehouse can also be considered a de facto church.
Having planned their wedding since May, Kiley Stuller and David Van Solkema planned to have their ceremony and reception at the East 24th Street venue.
They say their plans were put on hold do to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s executive order limiting indoor gatherings to 10 and outdoor gatherings to 100.
After the couple appealed to Ottawa County’s health department to allow the ceremony, they received a cease and desist order instead.
Attorney Robert Muise, who runs the controversial Ann Arbor-based American Freedom Law Center, said, “A wedding is sacred, it doesn’t matter the particular venue of the wedding."
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