After hearing the recent details about the wedding reception of Ben Roethlisberger and Ashley Harlan, I started thinking: there might be a way rich athletes can help stimulate the American economy. If more wealthy athletes and celebrities bite the bullet and have a wedding the only way they know how — with unnecessary luxuries — we can start pumping hundreds of thousands of dollars into the economy. Just ask those involved with Big Ben’s wedding reception.
According to the Pittsburgh Tribune, Roethlisberger paid $113,265 to rent the Spirit of Pittsburgh Ballroom. The cost included 10 meeting rooms, a convention room, and all 750 parking spaces in the venue’s parking garage. The price tag did not include catering, floral decorations, additional security or transportation.
The catering company Ben and Ashley used, Common Plea Catering, would not disclose how much the food cost but John Smith, the owner of All Occasion Catering in Robinson, said he’s sure it would have cost somewhere in the $300-$500 range. More than 600 guests were served, so that should give you an idea of the additional cost of food.
The catering company alone used more than 150 employees at the reception. The wedding planner, Sheila Weiner, is believed to have added a 10-figure number to the overall cost. So you see the point. More of these highly-paid athletes need to start popping the question so we can dig our way out of this recession. We need to get out of this funk as quickly as possible, and they can always do the normal thing and get divorced. It’s all about doing your duty as an American.
P.S. – No word of a stunningly well-done wedding video yet, but we’ll keep you posted.
