Best Man's Role In A Wedding
December 2nd, 2008

The best man plays a very important role in the wedding. While he may not be as involved in the wedding plans and preparations as the maid of honor is but he does participate in his own way. The groom is less likely than the bride to feel that it is very important to have his best friend in on every decision so the majority of the responsibilities of the best man take place either at the wedding or in the few days prior to the wedding. Planning the bachelor party, organizing tuxedo rental and returns, organizing the groomsmen, holding the ring during the ceremony and offering the first toast at the reception are just a few of the responsibilities that the best man bears in a wedding.

Organizing the bachelor party is one of the biggest roles that the best man plays in a wedding. This party is typically a night for the groom and his friends to share one more night of bonding before the wedding. While bachelor parties used to take place exclusively on the night before the wedding and involve large quantities of alcohol and women of ill refute the modern best man tends to venture away from tradition in planning the bachelor party. As one of the closest friends of the groom, the best man is able to choose a time, location and activities for the bachelor party that the groom will enjoy.

The best man also plays a role in choosing and arranging for the tuxedo rentals for himself and the groomsmen. The best man usually accompanies the groom to choose styles and colors for the tuxedos to be worn by the best man and the groomsmen. Once the styles and colors have been chosen the best man is responsible for reserving, picking up and paying for his own wedding attire. Additionally, the best man also informs the groomsmen of the tuxedo choices and organizes a time for the other groomsmen to visit the rental shop to have their measurements taken and reserve their own tuxedos. After the wedding the best man is responsible for returning his own tuxedo and if the bride and groom are leaving immediately after the reception for their honeymoon, the best man will take care of returning the groom's tuxedo as well.

Another role that the best man plays is to supervise and coordinate the groomsmen. The best man takes on the responsibility of ensuring that all of the groomsmen are aware of when they need to be somewhere and what they need to be doing. Taking on the rolel of coordinator for the men in the wedding party unburdens the groom of this task. The groom no longer has to worry about making multiple phone calls every time there is a slight change of plans. He can simply call his best man and then rely on the best man to make everyone aware of the situation and expectations. In general the best man is there to be the groom's friend and help to alleviate his fears and to make things easy for him. Knowing that the best man will take care of organizing and coordinating the groomsmen and will always be there to listen allows the groom to relax and trust that none of the details will be overlooked.

In addition to all of his pre-wedding preparations, the best man also plays a couple of roles during the wedding ceremony and the reception. During the ceremony the best man lends his support by standing beside the groom in a display of solidarity. The best man also safeguards the rings during the ceremony until they are requested by the officiant. This is imperative because the groom is likely to be nervous and may forget where he put the rings for safekeeping. Entrusting the rings to the best man, however, ensures that the rings will be kept safe and not misplaced.

One of the most important responsibilities of the best man is to offer the first toast to the bride and the groom at the reception. In this role the best man is not only offering his sentiment to the new couple but he is also expressing the feelings of all of those in attendance. While everyone at the reception may wish to convey their feelings of good will, it is the best man who is able to do so publicly.

In general the role of the best man is to support the groom and to act in the best interest of the groom. Although there are certain responsibilities such as planning the bachelor party, safeguarding the wedding rings, coordinating the groomsmen and offering the first toast at the reception, the biggest role of the best man is to be a friend to the groom

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