Hello friends and family,

We are honored you will share in our special day. Your presence is our gift! We are lucky to have enough material possessions to live comfortably. Instead of funding our honeymoon, we will donate any funds we receive to issues that matter to us. The three charities we have chosen represent three critical and urgent issues facing our country and the world.

1. Racial injustice

We believe in standing up for black lives and acknowledge the deep systemic structural racism that exists in our country today. We must confront the injustices of the past and present so that we may move forward together to build a nation of liberty and justice for all.

2. Climate change

Time is running short to act on climate change. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s recent report said that avoiding the worst impacts of climate change and keeping warming below 1.5º Celsius would “require rapid, far-reaching and unprecedented changes in all aspects of society.” While this may seem daunting, it’s also an opportunity to transform our economy and workforce toward clean energy and safer jobs.

3. COVID-19

We are living through an unprecedented global pandemic that is still evolving. The inconvenience of the cancellation of our wedding pales in comparison to the suffering endured by the victims of COVID-19 and their families. Funds raised by the CDC Foundation through the Emergency Response Fund are being used to meet fast-emerging needs identified by CDC to help respond to the public health threat posed by this virus.

All donations will be listed as"friends and family of Mallory Barnes and Spencer Dawson". Thanks for visiting and we can't wait to see you on our big day!

P.S. If you want your donation to be tax-deductible, you will need to donate directly to the organization (links provided). We will not be notified when you do this, however, so please email to let us know if you've donated directly on our behalf.