Jamila Henderson and Kenny Chowdhary are having a big church wedding on Oct. 13.
But on Thursday, they were at the Contra Costa County Clerk's offices in downtown Martinez making their matrimony official.
Henderson, 29, and Chowdhardy, 30, said they simply wanted their official wedding anniversary to be Valentine's Day. The ceremony in October is more of a celebration.
Henderson, a Dublin resident, grew up in Minnesota. Chowdhary, a Richmond resident, grew up in New Jersey. They met while working together in Princeton.
Their Valentine ceremony was performed by Michael Mahoney, a retired plumber from Richmond who legally can officiate weddings in California. He volunteers on Valentine's Day to oversee the ceremonies.
"I love doing this. It's so much fun," said Mahoney.
This was one of more than 30 weddings performed Thursday in two rooms at the clerk's office.
Barbara Chambers, a retired assistant county clerk, also volunteered to perform some of the ceremonies.
Ceremonies were also being conducted Thursday at the Alameda County Clerk's office in Oakland.
