Sera (Bonds) & Adam Rosenbloom July 27, 2007
Hyde Park, Vermont
They fell in love in the rooftop of the world: Tibet, while working with local women to improve their chances at survival. Not a traditional courtship, to be sure. They went from there to tsunami devastated Sri Lanka, where they worked with a team of women’s health professionals helping the survivors to find a way to love what remained of their lives. They were engaged while working in Vietnam on HIV/AIDS and went as newlyweds to the Middle East where they work to bring together women from both sides of the conflict forging a peaceful way forward. Adam is a medical student in Israel, and Sera is the Director of a US-based non-profit organization, Circle of Health International.
They chose to get married on Adam’s family’s farm in Hyde Park, Vermont, with great purpose and intent. Since they don’t live in the US, and most of their friends live and work abroad as well, they wanted to get married in a place full of serenity, quite, and calm: Vermont was perfect for that! It was an outdoor ceremony, and guests arrived days before, camped on the farm, and worked together the day of the ceremony to make flower arrangements and set up the tables while others played Frisbee and went for hikes. It was a real do-it-yourself wedding!
Sera wore a stunning dress designed and made by her soon to be sister-in-law, Nancy Rosenbloom, and Adam’s attire was purchased in Montreal from a local Arab boutique. The Chuppah has a wedding gift from Adam’s brother living in Jerusalem. Some of the guests work Kipot from www.judaicaemb.com.
The wedding ceremony itself was as powerful as their love for one another. Friends and family traveled from far away like Venezuela, bringing with them the reminder that these two truly do live in a global village! The wedding ceremony was performed by Rabbi Lev Baesh, and the couple shared their vows under the Chuppah. The couple was lovingly surrounded by a radiant circle of beaming friends and family. There was Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream, and at dusk there were fireworks!!!
The couple and their friends and families celebrated late into the night, dancing on an outdoor dance floor under a full moon late. Perfect, in every way....
About the Bride & Groom:
Groom: Adam Rosenbloom, MPH, MD candidate 2010
Bride: Sera Bonds, MPH (Founder, Circle of Health International); works in disaster and conflict areas. "War-affected women are the focus of my daily mediation, personal and professional."
Residence: Be’er Sheba, Israel,
18 miles east of Gaza
An Inclusive Love
Weddings are a special time for brides and grooms to focus on their commitment to each other. This serious, yet playful commitment was immediately evident when I first met Sera and Adam. And I love to be part of that as their photographer---charged with the joyful job of showing those qualities visually.
I witnessed the inclusive love this couple had for their family and for their friends from around the world. One activity that illustrated this was the signing of their Ketubah. the part that seemed most meaningful was when each of their large inner circle of supporters was embraced by the bride and groom, not only receiving the love and prayers of their family and friends but also giving back their love and support.
Sera and Adam's inclusiveness of their guests continued through the ceremony and reception. This couple truly looked outward rather than just inward on their wedding day. It is a reflection of the work they have chosen: relief aid to those people caught in the throes of natural disasters.
~ Orah Moore ~
