Wedding Venue Rejects Couple Because They're Gay And It Horribly Backfires On Them

One wedding venue rejection turned into a public mess for a Nashville couple, and the backlash was immediate. What started as a search for the right rustic space quickly became a story about discrimination, social media outrage, and a business decision that many people thought crossed the line.

Mike Gill and Coty Heaton got engaged on July 10 and spent the following months looking for a place to celebrate their wedding. They eventually found the Barn in the Bend, a cozy Nashville venue that seemed to fit their style and budget, until the owner’s response to their same-sex marriage plans changed everything.

Then the conversation with the venue owner took a sharp turn, and the couple decided to share it with everyone.

The couple was rejected by a wedding venue just because of their sexual orientation

coty.heaton Mike Gill

Everything seemed fine at first; however, at some point, Jackie, the owner, realized that her venue was going to be used for a same-sex marriage. This led her to include a signature in her email to Mike.

For whatever reason, what came out in her first email was the opposite of what was in her head. It clearly read, "We offer same-sex marriage ceremonies only."

Jackie eventually figured out her mistake and set off to correct it an hour later with a different signature. This time, it read, "We do not offer same-sex marriage ceremonies."

In response to this, Mike told Jackie that he would do her the courtesy of letting everyone in the area know that the Barn in the Bend was bigoted, to which Jackie stood her ground, reasoning that it was because of her religious beliefs.

That email exchange made the whole situation impossible to ignore.

After the couple shared their conversation with the owner, the public was furious

TMZ

People’s reactions have been overwhelmingly positive and supportive,” Mike said. “Once things really blew up, we stopped reading the comments because there are trolls on the internet you can’t avoid. But so many people we know and don’t know reached out through social media, and it’s been incredible.”

Fortunately, the couple did find another venue that is even more wonderful. “It’s called The Grove at Williamson Family Farm.”

“Our focus now is to start planning a really great wedding and party for our friends and family to be a part of. This was an unfortunate start to the process, but it’s helped us find so many more options we didn’t know about!” they said.

They ended up with a better option, but the original rejection still lit up the comments.

coty.heaton

Michelle Lew, the owner of Lavender Crown Events, a wedding planning company servicing San Jose, Silicon Valley, and surrounding areas, also thought the venue's decision was ridiculous.

She also mentioned that venues can refuse to host a wedding, but usually for legitimate reasons.

Her comments added another layer to the backlash.

People who also saw the couple's post jumped to their defense

georgejackson georgejackson

"Jackie was awful."

georgejackson

"Inclusion and love as it was intended."

georgejackson KyleMoshier

“It was just to let the people in our friend circle and the Nashville area know about this venue and their unfortunate business practices,” he said. “It’s frustrating that just because we are a same-sex couple, we don’t have the same options as any other couple.”

It’s similar to the best friend who excluded my partner from the wedding invite.

He wanted to warn people, not start a viral moment.

The decision of the venue's owner may have seriously backfired on her, but people think it's well-deserved

WesB73

Next Stop: The Middle Ages

Salla Bengtsson

"A thought"

Brad Motl

"We all have our prejudices."

Betty Constable

"I don't get it."

Susan Williamson-Welker

"Who is going to deny you because you're LGBTQ?"

Ashlie Mildfelt

"Money is money." (Unless you're a bigot, apparently.)

Will Nye

"Just a thought."

Lori Kurz

Moo

Elizabeth Griffith

"A marriage is a declaration of love between two people."

Emma Nielsen

Love is love.

Melissa Cobb

"In this day and age..."

Jessica Brown

WHY, indeed?

Ermin Klimenta

Seriously, we're already in 2022, and what's weirder is that they're a business, so why would they care what their customers are into? Shouldn't it be kept professional?

Unless they're some kind of criminals or people who might be looking to burn down the venue, we don't think we'd bat an eye if it were us. Someone should really give this business owner a lesson in inclusion, if not business management, at least.

That last take pretty much says what everyone else was thinking.

For another brutal wedding fallout, read what happened after parents disowned this bride and got excluded.