William Shatner attends and blesses wedding of Star Trek fans in Ticonderoga, New York

William Shatner on stage at the Star Trek Las Vegas Convention in 2019

NOVEMBER 30, 2021 - It isn’t uncommon for Trekkies to find love in one another; it happens all the time! What is uncommon is for Captain Kirk to show up at your wedding. This story was first reported by the Times Record of Portland, Maine.

This November saw the marriage of Star Trek fans Jim Grant and Amy Wells. At a hotel in Ticonderoga, NY, the couple were married in front of 150 of their family and friends, but the guest list didn’t stop there. William Shatner was on hand to personally deliver a blessing after the couple had said their vows. Getting Captain Kirk to show up at your wedding might seem like an impossible task. For Grant and Wells, the stars aligned to make it possible.

Grant first met Shatner at the Star Trek Original Series Set Tour in Ticonderoga a fews years back, and the couple connected with the actor again during an “online meet and greet” in 2020. It was that video call which would change the course of Grant and Wells’ wedding plans. 

The couple have been together for a decade. Grant recalled the moment when Shatner asked if the two had set a date for the wedding. As a joke, Grant told him, “Well I told my friends I’ll get married when William Shatner is at my wedding.” Shatner responded, saying, “Well, let’s do it.” According to Grant, Shatner “wanted to promote a message of love between people [...] love as in a marriage, love as in friendship, just loving each other as human beings and to perpetuate that message.”

And so, with some planning, the couple were married. During the ceremony, Shatner made some opening comments, then recited his own lines from the wedding scene in the Star Trek episode “Balance of Terror”, saying, “Since the days of the first wooden vessels, all shipmasters have had one happy privilege, and that is uniting two people in the bonds of matrimony. And so, we are gathered here today with you, James, and you, Amy, in [the] sight of your fellows, in accordance with our laws and our many beliefs so that you may pledge your love to one another. Please kiss the bride.”

And he said it all while standing behind the very same altar used on screen in “Balance of Terror” in 1966.

For Grant and Wells, having William Shatner at their wedding truly speaks to what Star Trek is all about. “I think that the general [theme Star Trek tries] to hit is that regardless of our differences, we all deserve respect, and you should care about anyone, whether they’re a close friend or a stranger,” said Grant. “To go out of his way to do that for us, you know, people that he briefly met online, just kind of shows what kind of guy he is.”

Please join us in congratulating the happy couple as they continue their journey together in marriage. Live long and prosper, Amy and Jim!