the cancellation resulted in Lavin being beat up by bloggers. Last Saturday, Lavin and Jarou decided the most effective and efficient way to notify invited guests of the wedding change was to e-mail them directly before guests progressed any further with plans to book flights and rooms. That e-mail has made its way onto the Internet.
"For a day and a half, we were a little down," Lavin said. "But it was kind of liberating because we now have the freedom and autonomy to create a magical wedding in Europe." Here was the problem: They sought a relaxing, fun wedding for everyone and originally they were led to believe that only 65-70 percent, yet no more than 75 percent, of invited guests would RSVP.
"All of a sudden we realize we're at 500 (guests) and going north," Lavin said. "There were a lot of moving parts. We began to wonder is this really worth it?
" The Montage's Grand Ballroom has a maximum seating capacity of 450 so Lavin was looking at an uncomfortable round-peg-in-square-hole scenario. The Montage has a separate gallery ballroom that seats 160, but Lavin said he didn't like the concept of having a "JV room and varsity room" and the logistics of that, including the necessity of two wedding entrances. They studied the possibility of having the wedding reception at a different venue, but decided against that because most places are already booked because it's peak wedding season and there would be traffic issues getting guests from one place to another on a get-away Friday.
So, the best-laid plans to tie the knot were regretfully untied. Lavin initially intended to have UCLA coaching legend John Wooden stand up with him along with his father, Cap, and Purdue coach Gene Keady. Wooden had to bow out of the ceremony last spring because of health concerns.
The groomsmen were to be Lavin's brothers - John, Mark and Ken - plus Lavin's high school buddy, Craig Nelson, and former UCLA players Earl Watson and Gerald Watkins. But, when the guest list exceeded expectations, Lavin and Jarou called timeout, huddled and changed wedding plans, even if it might upset people or ruin their chances of striking the lottery in terms of wedding presents. "From a practical standpoint, we wouldn't have been able to execute the game plan," Lavin said.
"The best alternative is to flee the country." Lavin said responses from guests have been respectful and understanding. The tentative plan now is to wed in either Paris, London or Italy, take lots of photos then share them during smaller, less formal receptions in Michigan with Jarou's family and friends then in the Bay Area with Lavin's family and friends.
That's what Mary Lavin, Steve's mom, suggested from the very beginning. "Mother knows best," the 42-year-old Lavin said. "We came back full circle to what she said.
" She sure beats the wedding coordinator. Dave Albee is an IJ staff writer. Write to him care of Sports, Marin Independent Journal, 150 Alameda del Prado, Novato, 94948-6150.
His phone number is 382-7300; the fax number is 883-5458; the e-mail is dalbee@marinij.com. the cancellation resulted in Lavin being beat up by bloggers.
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