search for solemnizer

as my wedding is getting closer, we start to search for our solemnizer since it will be held outside ROM.... actually this is like the MOST important thing for your wedding cause without this cert, no matter how pretty or extravagant your banquet can be, you are not officially married!!!! we thought of finding a solemnizer about 6 months before our wedding but kind of forgotten about it & from the ROM site, it is recommended to look for one about 3 months prior to your wedding so we heed their advice.... so about last week which is almost 3 months before our big date, i start to search online for solemnizers.... & only then i realised there are so many things that we need to consider!!!!

so naturally we start off with googling who are the popular solemnizers & their reviews... before reading up on ROM site, i thought any lawyers can be a solemnizer but nope... they must be licensed... so most of the time they are either justice of peace (JP) or grassroot leaders but of cause there are other people who are also appointed to be solemnizers... ROM has a list of licensed solemnizers....... quite a comprehensive list i would say.... i think there are like at least a hundred names on that list but separated into different category..... based on the net search, people recommend to look under Partners of FamilyMatters@Work if you are free-thinker.... cause if you look under some religion then there may be some religious teaching during solemnization and some people may not be comfortable with it.... so if you are fine with any guy to do the solemnization then can just email or call or sms anybody on the list.... then me being kiasu will want to get someone with good reviews so i went to read blogs & forums to sieve out potential candidates..... so let me share those people that i have contacted & some good sites that i found....

blog 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 , top 40 solemnizer in singapore

1. Dr PHUA Tan Tee (phua_tan_tee@nea.gov.sg)
- he is like the MOST popular guy, like every blog or site i searched, his name will definitely pop up....so naturally i email him as my first choice & he replied within like 5min but sadly he's busy =( kind of expected if he is like THE BEST guy.....

2. Mr LEE Keok Boon Peter (peter_lee@moh.gov.sg)
- another popular guy but nah... not free on 29th nov

3. Mr TAN Yan Boon Alex (alexyanboon@gmail.com / 9850 0689)
- popular guy, he did solemnization for my future bro-in-law, quite nice & friendly looking guy... but also not free

after i emailed my top 3 solemnizers & they are all not free... i get desperate cause 29th Nov is like bloody popular date... so i begin to mass email instead of asking 1 by 1 & wait for their reply...

4. Mr SIM Khee Wang Simon (simnotco@gmail.com)
- popular guy and expected he isnt free but he referred me to his friend

5. Dr KWOH Chee Keong (asckkwoh@ntu.edu.sg)
- on top 40 list but no reply after 1 week so out....

6. Mr Wong Eric (9848 3286)
- also popular guy, very prompt reply but also not free

7. Mr LAU Tat Chuan (tatchuan@fathers.com.sg)
- popular guy with very prompt rely but not free

8. Dr CHUNG Tang Fong (9672 9312)
- prompt reply but not free

9. Dr HO Nai Kiong (honaikiong@yahoo.com)
- 1 review say he is nice but also not free for me =(

10. Dr CHEW Chee Tong (pctchew@gmail.com)
- no reply after 1 week

11. Dr CHUA Swee Boon Raymond (8112 5093)
- a statistician in NUS if i am not wrong but no reply after 1 week

12. Mr KAN Teck San (9682 0054)
- top 40 list, took 5hr to reply but also not free

you see, i have contacted like 12 guys & all not free... can you imagine how devastated i was.... so i being to search for those not on the popular list & try my luck

13. Mr HO Hoe Sing (9635 4543)
- referred by Mr Simon Sim but he also not free

14. Mr TEH Chin Huak Zenon (zenonteh@singnet.com.sg)
- he is under additional solemnizer category and quite a few good reviews on him.... he is booked at 6pm which is our intended timing so he kindly suggest to us that he can help us if we can do our solemnization at 5pm or 7pm... but we prefer so stick to our original timing so sadly we had to reject him...

15. Mr WEE (9017 7888)
- referred by Mr Ho, very prompt reply... at first he agreed but after that called me to apologized that he couldnt make it on 29th Nov.... but kindly referred us to his buddy....

16. Prof TAN Wee Hin Leo (leotan@nus.edu.sg)
 - i was happened to stumble upon a page that state that he was a newly appointed JP in 2013 & he is from NUS.... he looks like a very nice guy from the picture so we tried our luck & FINALLY... he say YES!!! i was like OMG!!! FINALLY!!! some kind soul is free for us!!!

17. Mr YING Adrian (9640 9653)
- referred by Mr Wee but we didnt contact him since we gotten Prof Tan

i contacted like 16 people before i gotten my solemnizer!!!! i read in blogs that most people found theirs after asking like less than 5 people.... i asked like 3x the amount lo.... kns.... but no matter... at least i found mine....

Meetup with Prof Tan
so we met up with Prof Tan today... really very nice guy... very fatherly looking... probably in his late 60s??? he is from Dept of Biological Science.... i felt that i have seen him somewhere.... he MIGHT have taught me before but oh well.... he first congratulate us and start off with some casual talking and sharing with us that it is important that we are truly ready for marriage due to the high divorce rate.... he also gently guide us on the procedure as well as what will happen on the actual solemnization.... throughout our 20min+ meetup, he is always smiley & optimistic.... we have found the RIGHT guy!!! YEAH!!!! really happy to have him as our solemnizer =)

Prof Tan, photo taken from DBS site...