Marriage equality is here and we are the LGBTQ wedding experts.

14 Stories was the first firm in the USA specializing in planning legal same-sex weddings and the Equality Institute (formerly the Gay Wedding Institute), launched in 2009, continues to be a national thought leader, researcher and educator on gay and lesbian weddings.  Our trainings are available in English, Spanish and Portuguese.  Our vision is for a wedding industry fully inclusive of all couples, including LGBTQ couples.

The company is a LGBTE-certified business by the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce - and therefore eligible to provide training for your company using your supplier diversity budget.

Bernadette Smith

Bernadette Smith is founder and president of 14 Stories and the Equality Institute, and award-winning author of three books about same-sex weddings, including The Business of Gay Weddings: A Guide for Wedding Professionals.

Bernadette and her team have produced hundreds of LGBTQ+ weddings since 2004, working with couples from most U.S. states and around the world. In 2004, when she founded 14 Stories, Bernadette’s vision was to disrupt the heteronormative wedding industry with a vision of inclusion of all couples. She knew that training others to be LGBTQ inclusive was the way to help the most people. Bernadette is an expert speaker and trainer and her candid, practical approach, and brings a unique insider perspective to the inclusion conversation.

Bernadette's expertise has been sought after by the Today Show, National Public Radio, the BBC, the New York Times, the Washington Post, CNN, Travel and Leisure among many others.