Encino Officiants + Premarital Counseling

Married by Maria

Fully Personalized Weddings & Bilingual if Needed

Encino, CA

Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties & Surrounding Areas

Travel area: Within 100 miles See details

5.0

Praised by couples for:

Officiant

Great Planner

Seasoned Professional

Maria was absolutely amazing, and we are so grateful we had her as our wedding officiant! From the planning process to our wedding day, she was so attentive, thoughtful, and helpful every step of the way. One of the things that meant the most to us was her ability to provide a bilingual ceremony that brought both sides of our family together. Our wedding celebrated different cultures and faiths, and it was really important to us that everyone felt welcomed, respected, and included. Maria did such a beautiful job of bringing everyone together and making the ceremony feel meaningful to all of our loved ones. Our family members absolutely loved the ceremony, and it made us so happy to see everyone feel connected and be part of such a special moment in our lives. We truly couldn’t have asked for a better officiant. Maria put so much care into making our ceremony personal and memorable, and we will always be grateful for the role she played in our wedding day. We wholeheartedly recommend her to any couple looking for someone who is not only professional and attentive but also genuinely cares about making everyone feel included. Thank you so much, Maria, for helping make our day so special! ❤️

Michelle O.

5.0

We couldn’t have asked for a better officiant for our wedding! She was so kind, accommodating, and thoughtful throughout the entire process. Her communication leading up to the day was excellent, and she took the time to understand our vision and sent drafts ahead of time so we could feel comfortable with every part of the ceremony. Truly appreciated her effort and dedication. She made us feel cared for and helped make our ceremony so special. We’re so grateful she was part of our day and would wholeheartedly recommend her to any couple!

Benjamin H.

5.0

Maria

BILINGUAL OWNER/DUEÑA BILINGUE

Typically responds within 24h

AWARD WINNER (5X)

Thanks to recommendations from couples on The Knot

I have over 15 years of experience performing weddings and I would love to help you or any of your friends or family members to have a beautiful, personalized ceremony. My professional and personal experiences as a lawyer, a mom, a business owner, a multicultural, multiethnic family and being fully bilingual in English and Spanish, have given me a multicultural background that will help me to customize your wedding in a very unique and special way. Feel free to give me call or contacting me via e-mail, I look forward to meeting you and it would be my privilege to be able to be part of the most important day of your life.

Hispanic or Latinx-owned and Woman-owned Business

15+ years in business

Speaks English, Spanish

Small team (2-10 members)

Details

Ceremony Types

Civil Union

Commitment Ceremony

Elopement

Interfaith Ceremony

Non-Religious Ceremony

Religious Ceremony

Second Wedding

Vow Renewal Ceremony

Planning

Se Habla Español

Religious Affiliations

Christian

Catholic

Interfaith

Spiritual

Wedding Activities

Wedding

Ceremony

Awards and Affiliations

5-Time 'Best of Weddings'

2026.2025.2024.+2 more.

Hall of Fame

Earned by winning 'Best of Weddings' four or more times.

Join couples who chose award-winning vendors for their wedding

Meet the team

Maria

Bilingual Owner/Dueña bilingue

I’m a romantic at heart and a true believer in love. I feel honored to witness couples share their promises and begin one of life’s most beautiful chapters together. Your love story deserves to be heard, understood, and beautifully told. As a bilingual wedding officiant, I create personalized ceremonies in English, Spanish, or both, making sure your ceremony reflects who you are, your journey, and the love you share. I truly love what I do, and my goal is to make your ceremony as meaningful, personal, and unforgettable as your love story. Soy una romántica de corazón y una verdadera creyente en el amor. Me siento profundamente honrada de acompañar a las parejas mientras comparten sus promesas y comienzan juntos uno de los capítulos más hermosos de sus vidas. Tu historia de amor merece ser escuchada, comprendida y contada con el corazón. Como oficiante bilingüe, creo ceremonias personalizadas en español, inglés o en ambos idiomas, asegurándome de que tu ceremonia refleje quiénes son, su historia y el amor que comparten. Amo profundamente lo que hago, y mi propósito es hacer que su ceremonia sea tan especial, auténtica e inolvidable como su historia de amor.

5.0

out of 5.0

88 reviews

Your trust is our goal. Our community relies on honest reviews to help you make those big decisions with ease.

Review Summary

This AI-generated summary is a snapshot of this vendor's ratings and feedback.

Couples praise Maria as an attentive, professional, and warm officiant who crafts personalized, bilingual ceremonies that honor multiple cultures. She communicates clearly, provides drafts, helps with paperwork, and is flexible with last-minute changes. Guests felt included and moved; she comes highly recommended.

Search reviews

Michelle O

Maria was absolutely amazing, and we are so grateful we had her as our wedding officiant! From the planning process to our wedding day, she was so attentive, thoughtful, and helpfu...

l every step of the way. One of the things that meant the most to us was her ability to provide a bilingual ceremony that brought both sides of our family together. Our wedding celebrated different cultures and faiths, and it was really important to us that everyone felt welcomed, respected, and included. Maria did such a beautiful job of bringing everyone together and making the ceremony feel meaningful to all of our loved ones. Our family members absolutely loved the ceremony, and it made us so happy to see everyone feel connected and be part of such a special moment in our lives. We truly couldn’t have asked for a better officiant. Maria put so much care into making our ceremony personal and memorable, and we will always be grateful for the role she played in our wedding day. We wholeheartedly recommend her to any couple looking for someone who is not only professional and attentive but also genuinely cares about making everyone feel included. Thank you so much, Maria, for helping make our day so special! ❤️

Benjamin H

We couldn’t have asked for a better officiant for our wedding! She was so kind, accommodating, and thoughtful throughout the entire process. Her communication leading up to the day...

was excellent, and she took the time to understand our vision and sent drafts ahead of time so we could feel comfortable with every part of the ceremony. Truly appreciated her effort and dedication. She made us feel cared for and helped make our ceremony so special. We’re so grateful she was part of our day and would wholeheartedly recommend her to any couple!

Any questions?

Veronica T

Maria scripted a wonderful mixed ceremony that respected both of our traditions. Our communication was clear and we are ecstatic with how the ceremony went. We received numerous co...

mpliments on how beautiful the ceremony was.

Jessie V

It was a pleasure working with Maria as our officiant. We wanted a blend of more traditional elements for our parents and more romantic elements for us and she was able to blend ev...

erything together very well. We had a bilingual ceremony and the inclusion of both languages felt balanced without being repetitive. The communication before was excellent and very clear. We knew the plan and the day itself went very well. She was also great about letting us know the next steps for the marriage license. I would definitely recommend Maria as an officiant!

Yesenia C

Maria was an incredible touch to our wedding. Her communication, punctuality, professionalism, & understanding for everything we wanted for our Ceremony was understood and taken in...

to consideration. Everything was so beautifully said. All was very smooth from the first call we had with her, we are so lucky to have had her apart of our special day. Look no further, she is the touch you need for your special day!

Yesenia O

Thank you, Maria, for officiating such a beautiful and meaningful wedding ceremony. You were incredibly easy to work with, communicated everything clearly, and made the entire proc...

ess stress-free. We especially appreciated how you helped incorporate parts of our culture into the ceremony in a way that felt natural and perfectly balanced. The draft you provided allowed us to make edits and personalize everything exactly how we wanted. So many of our family members commented on how wonderful you were and how eloquently you spoke. We are so grateful for your care, professionalism, and the special role you played in our wedding day. Highly recommend! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Ryan R

My wife and I were greatly satisfied with having Maria as our officiant. She is very prompt and professional and is very flexible in finding the time to meet us whether it be in pe...

rson or online to go over details and had her own well done script for the whole wedding ceremony that didn’t need any editing/changes. She is very helpful and approachable, answering any questions we had quickly and was a great speaker in the wedding that carried a perfect voice and tone for the role. We highly recommend anyone looking for an officiant to hire Maria for the job, you won’t be disappointed.

Betsy C

She’s really nice, she gave us different options for our wedding. She helped us with everything.

Sophie G

Maria was so amazing to work with! She always responded promptly and made herself available to chat. She was able to help guide us through all the steps we needed to take in order ...

to get married, informing us about the paperwork we needed to submit and what our options were. We had a very small and short elopement ceremony, but Maria put so much care into her speech, giving us ample opportunity to review her draft and make small changes as necessary. She was flexible and gracious with our short timeline, and was enthusiastic about a small, last minute surprise I wanted to add to our ceremony. Maria helped make our day so special, and I can't recommend her enough!

Jessica P

Maria is the best officiant you will ever find. Go ahead and book her now, she is very professional and reliable. Throughout the process she made the process easy and smooth. She a...

nswered all my questions and she made suggestions. My family and friends enjoyed my ceremony so much that I kept hearing how lovely the ceremony was. My ceremony was bilingual and it was definitely was I wanted. Well spoken Spanish and English. Definitely hire her for your event.

Joselin O

She did an amazing job! Had a bilingual ceremony and she did it all! It was a great experience overall!

Emily C

Mariah is amazing!! She walked us through the whole processes. She was very professional, thorough, and easy to work with.

Dee S

Maria is very kind and professional, excellent communication. She was super helpful and flexible! We had the perfect ceremony, a private secluded one. We're very happy. Maria is th...

e best!!

Genesis G

Maria was the officiant for our wedding and she did the ceremony in Spanish. She was truly so amazing and captured everything well. We received many compliments from our guest that...

she articulated the meaning of marriage well and loved how she explained the candle ceremony and the arras. Her words really encapsulated everything that a marriage is. We highly recommend her!

Kenia A

Maria was amazing!! We loved the ceremony, all family and friends had a very special memory of that day. She has been very supportive with all the paperwork done afterwards so I’m ...

glad we chose her as officiant! ❤️

Carla U

We couldn’t have asked for a more incredible officiant for our wedding. From the very beginning, she brought such warmth, grace, and sincerity that instantly made us feel at ease. ...

Her presence was calming and heartfelt, and it was clear how much care she put into every word she spoke. Her ceremony speech was nothing short of beautiful — it was meaningful, personal, and brought so many happy tears to our eyes. She captured our love story so perfectly and made everyone feel included in our special moment. Guests are still telling us how touched they were by her words and how powerful and genuine the ceremony felt. She truly made our wedding day feel magical, and we are beyond grateful for the role she played. If you’re looking for an officiant who goes above and beyond, pours her heart into what she does, and delivers a ceremony that feels authentic and unforgettable, look no further. She is a gem!

Crystal M

Maria is an amazing officiant! She wrote out our ceremony beautifully, everyone loved it so much. She made it so personal and described our love life perfectly. We had a bilingual ...

ceremony, which made it extra special for us and all our guests. We are so happy we found her.

Diana R

We like to take this moment to appreciate the love & support Maria has shown us. She paid attention to each detail we asked for, she checked up on us, & despite the rainy weather, ...

she was a trooper for continuing the ceremony ! She made our moment be filled with excitement & joy. Thank you for marrying us 💍🤍

Carolina A

Maria was the officiant for our wedding in October. 2024 From start to finish, she was an absolute pleasure to work with. Maria is professional, kind, and patient, always making he...

rself available to answer any questions or clarify any doubts we had. She offered guidance with our vows and even suggested wonderful ideas for our handfasting ceremony. Maria took the time to create a bilingual ceremony, as requested, and sent us several drafts to ensure we were completely happy with the final version. Her attention to detail and dedication made our experience unforgettable. I highly recommend her without hesitation!

Georgina M

Maria was amazing to work with. She held a few meetings to get to know us as a couple and a family. She wrote the most amazing script that really captured our love. Our family prai...

sed our ceremony and it would not have been possible without Maria.

Anita H

Maria was a dream! She was highly responsive and made our ceremony perfect! She’s warm and kind and made us feel so comfortable during our ceremony. Maria was so thorough with prep...

aring for the ceremony. She sent us multiple drafts until it was perfect! Thank you, Maria!

Chelsey C

Very professional, personable, and organized! Maria let us review and edit the ceremony script to our liking. Many of my guests were Spanish speaking only; Maria helped craft the s...

cript so that everyone could understand all parts of the ceremony, and made it very special and unique just for us. She helped us coordinate the use of our own religious elements into the wedding ceremony. She even let us borrow her speaker and mics. Maria is wonderful!

Ava M

Maria was excellent! She prepared a beautiful and touching ceremony for us. She really takes the time to get to know you as a couple and ensure the ceremony is as you envisioned it...

. After the ceremony I had many friends and family come to me to share compliments about her and how well she did as our officiant. Thank you Maria!

Arlette A

Maria is amazing! With a month out from our wedding date, we were lucky to come across Maria's profile and we were interested by her rave reviews. After our initial call, we knew M...

aria was the right choice in an officiant for us. My husband and I were so lost in what we wanted from our ceremony but a few conversations with Maria provided so many ideas that we were then able to incorporate in the ceremony. On the day of, Maria was so professional, beautifully dress and prepared with everything needed. My family couldn't stop raving about Maria's service, noting how included they all felt and the ability to create a space of unity and love. It was such a pleasure to have met Maria and if you are looking for an officiant that will meet your needs, reach out to her! She's amazing!

Sabrina L

Our beach wedding ceremony was everything we dreamed of, thanks in large part to our incredible officiant Maria. She made the day feel personal, meaningful, and truly special. From...

the heartfelt words to the seamless delivery, it was professional and perfect. We especially loved the bilingual aspect of it! We couldn’t have asked for a better person to guide us through such an important moment. Thank you for making our wedding day unforgettable!

Edgar S

Maria was the best! She is very experienced and she helped guide us through the whole process. The ceremony was custom tailored to our liking. I would definitely recommend her to f...

amily and friends. She is professional, friendly, and easy to communicate with. She truly helped make our day special!

Carlos A

We couldn't have asked for a better officiant for our wedding! Maria was incredibly professional, kind, and genuinely made our ceremony special and personal. From the first meeting...

, she took the time to get to know us as a couple and truly understood the vision we had for our big day. Her words were heartfelt, and the ceremony was beautifully delivered, making it an unforgettable moment for us and our guests. We received so many compliments about how touching and personalized the ceremony was. We are so grateful to Maria for being a part of our wedding day and would highly recommend her to any couple looking for an officiant who truly cares and makes the day special!

Rene C

Maria was excellent. She made our wedding day unforgettable! We are pleased with our experience and would recommend her to anyone in need of her help.

Samantha C

Maria exceeded our expectations in every way. We interviewed a few bilingual officiants and after our first zoom call we knew she was the officiant for us. She has this enthusiasti...

c, confident energy which resonated with us and helped put us at ease. She made the whole process of writing our vows seamless and easy. We are more introverted so we wanted less speaking parts and ended up deciding to do private vows the morning of. She helped us rewrite the script so that it fit us and exactly what we wanted. She talked us through applying and registering for our marriage license and gave us a great tips on what to do. For the rehearsal and the wedding day of she was beyond fantastic. She made us feel like we were taken care of the whole way through. Plus she wore the cutest outfit! Thank you, Maria!

Jose G

Hello, my name is Francisco and I just wanted to let everybody know that thanks to the wonderful and kind Maria, My wedding experience was out of this world. I couldn’t have pictur...

ed a better wedding a better ceremony or a better memory she guided us through the whole situation and made us feel really comfortable. Thanks to her I am now with the love of my life for eternity .

Marvin V

We recently had the pleasure of having Maria officiate our wedding, and we couldn't be happier with our choice. From our very first meeting, Maria was warm, professional, and incre...

dibly organized. She took the time to get to know us as a couple, understanding our story and the vision we had for our ceremony. On the big day, Maria delivered a ceremony that was both heartfelt and personalized, striking the perfect balance between humor and sincerity. Many of our guests commented on how beautiful and unique the ceremony was, which is a testament to Maria’s skill and dedication. What stood out the most was Maria’s ability to make everyone feel comfortable and included. Their calm and reassuring presence helped ease our nerves and made the entire process enjoyable. Maria was also very flexible, accommodating last-minute changes with grace and ensuring that everything went smoothly. We are incredibly grateful to Maria for making our wedding day so special. If you are looking for an officiant who is professional, personable, and genuinely invested in creating a memorable ceremony, we highly recommend Maria. She truly made our day unforgettable. Thank you Maria!

Miriam R

Maria is an amazing officiant! She catered the ceremony to us and listened to all our requests. I would recommend Maria to anybody looking for an officiant!

Nino L

Maria was AMAZING. Her empathy and professionalism made her incredibly easy to work with. My wife and I felt supported, heard, and in good hands from the second we first reached ou...

t to her to days after the wedding. Her process was smooth & simple. It's clear Maria loves love which excited us and created trust. She did an fantastic bilingual ceremony which resonated with all of our guests. I would recommend Maria to anyone.

Oswald O

Amazing ceremony and creativeness done by Maria. Always on top of everything and very prepared. We had the best wedding because of all the help from Maria. Everyone commented on ho...

w great the ceremony was.

Karina O

María was absolutely amazing from start to finish! From the very beginning she helped ease our minds and ensured everything would be okay. We couldn’t have picked a better offician...

t for our ceremony! She was collaborative and knowledgeable helping us fill in all of our gaps. We received so many compliments on how beautiful and unique our ceremony was. 1000% recommend!

Daniel A

Our most incredible moment of the entire wedding was the ceremony, and without Maria, it wouldn't have been the same. Every word she spoke, every prayer, and every moment were uniq...

ue, making our ceremony truly special and emotional. We had guests who spoke Spanish and others who spoke English, and Maria was incredibly flexible in conducting the ceremony in both languages, ensuring that all our guests understood every heartfelt sentiment. Undoubtedly, Maria has earned a special place in our hearts for helping us officiate our union on the happiest day of our lives. We are eternally grateful.

Thalia L

We feel incredibly fortunate to have had Maria as the officiant for our civil ceremony. Right from our initial contact, Maria's guidance and expertise shone through as she patientl...

y walked us through various ceremony options and traditions. Her responsiveness and willingness to accommodate our preferences made the planning process seamless. Maria went above and beyond, continuously offering valuable feedback and insights to help us tailor the ceremony to reflect our personalities and wishes. Her attention to detail was evident when she shared a draft of the ceremony for our review, allowing us to make adjustments until it aligned perfectly with our vision. Maria's dedication and professionalism truly made our special day even more memorable. We wholeheartedly recommend her to anyone seeking a thoughtful and caring officiant.

Anthony G

Maria was a fantastic officiant very well spoken and professional. I would 100% recommend to anyone especially those looking for a bilingual speaker. I cant imagine my ceremony wit...

h anyone else

Adriana A

Maria was a joy to work with. I cried moments after receiving her ceremony script in my inbox: It was tender, thoughtful, and sweet. She highlighted both my and my husband's cultur...

es with tact and care. Before the ceremony, Maria gave me great feedback on my vows, and my husbands too. She was sweet, charming and funny. If you're looking for someone to turn your ceremony into a tender moment, Maria is the one for you. Thank you, Maria!

Yvette L

I really enjoyed working with Maria. My fiancé and I decided to have a ceremony at our venue last minute. We contacted Maria and she was extremely helpful given such short notice. ...

She was very easy to work with, very patient, and answered our emails and text messages with a reasonable amount of time. She has a lot of insight and experience, and simply loves love… which made it easy for us to choose her! Thank you for being party of our special day! :)

Lisbeth G

Maria was an excellent officiant! As soon as I reached out to inquire, she was very communicative. She gave us a call to understand exactly what my husband and I wanted and expecte...

d from the ceremony. She also gave great suggestions. When she had a draft ready she sent it to us for approval. I felt comfortable and happy with the results. Would strongly recommend.

Jasmine R

Maria was great with communicating with me through out the whole process. She was very responsive and made everything clear and simple. Thanks to her my husband and I had the cerem...

ony we always wanted. I love that she gave us control over what we wanted to include in our script which made it very personal and intimate. It was a pleasure working with her!

Gardenia R

Maria was amazing, she is extremely helpful and was able to answer any questions we had. She has a wonderful way with words and expressions. Many of our guests said they got emotio...

nal at our wedding and was one of the best ceremonies they had been to. Maria is also bilingual which was extremely important for me because my parents and grandmother only speak Spanish. She amazing!! We are so happy we found her🥰

Summer L

Maria was very profesional and sweet. Communicated well, responded to our questions and truly made things happen for us. We decided to go with the elopement and do it all last minu...

te. However, she helped us and worked with us. The experience my wife and I had was great! She is LGBTQ+ friendly and beyond. Believes love is love and made us feel comfortable in all ways. She mailed our marriage license the same day. Thank you, so much Maria. We look forward to seeing you next year at our family/friends gathering.

Cynthia B

Maria was absolutely amazing. All my family and my fiancé and I really enjoyed our ceremony. She made us comfortable she made us laugh and we cried because we were so emotional. Ma...

ria thank you so much for your professionalism, the ceremony was in English and Spanish and it was beautiful 😍. Highly recommend

Greg S

Maria is a wonderful officiant who gave such a wonderful speech at our wedding and even helped me deliver my vows in Spanish. I would highly recommend!

Karina T

Maria married us in October 2022 and we just loved her. This review is long overdue, but we both thought she did an excellent job as our officiant. She met up with us in person to ...

discuss how we wanted our ceremony to flow, and she gave us tips when we needed help writing our vows. She was also a great help in practicing how we would walk down the aisle, and how we would arrange everyone. Overall we are both so pleased. Thank you Maria for being our officiant!!

Yvette M

Maria you were Amazing. Everyone loved the ceremony. They loved the way you spoke so beautifully. We loved how you incorporated our kids and how you catered to our guest with doing...

the ceremony bilingual. We loved how you made the ceremony short but was able to cover all grounds. We will definitely being recommending you to anyone who needs an officiant. Thank you so much.

Elena A

My husband and I are extremely grateful to Maria for the beautiful ceremony she planned for us. During the planning process, we were looking for a bilingual English/Spanish officia...

nt and were wondering how it would work without making it too long/repetitive. Maria was knowledgeable, had several ideas, and was so nice on top of it all. Nothing but good vibes from the very first conversation. She drafted the ceremony for us a few weeks before the wedding so that we could look it over and make any changes/suggestions if we wanted to. She respected our wishes, but there honestly wasn’t much to change at all. She wrote up a beautiful mostly non-religious ceremony and helped us still include the lasso ceremony (a mostly Catholic Hispanic tradition) with a short blessing/prayer. She also read over our self-written vows and gave us her feedback. On the day of the wedding, she not only drove two hours in a storm to make it to our venue early, but she came prepared with her printed ceremony script and copies of our vows in case we needed them. She threw in a couple humorous ad-libs and overall, everyone was impressed by her. Our families and friends had nothing but good things to say. We could tell she genuinely loves what she does and it’s not just another day at work for her. Thank you Maria for helping make our wedding ceremony beautiful and memorable!

Andrew S

Maria officiated my wedding a few weeks ago and she could not have done a better job! We had a bilingual wedding with a few different cultural ceremony aspects and she was able to ...

expertly organize and explain the purpose of every portion of the ceremony. She was very professional and helpful throughout the whole process leading up to the wedding and I would 100% recommend her!

Service area & Contact info

15760 VENTURA BLVD. #828, Encino, CA

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Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties & Surrounding Areas
Typically included in the starting cost

Travel area: Within 100 miles

Additional charges may apply

(818) 515-6614

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Married by Maria

Maria

Bilingual Owner/Dueña bilingue

Typically responds within 24h

Married by Maria's photos

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Married by Maria

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