The San Diego County Clerk’s office opened Saturday to perform civil ceremonies during a special, Valentine’s Day event at the County Administration Center downtown.
After their vows, San Diego County Assessor-Recorder-Clerk Jordan Marks asks Camara Barooks, 54, and Willie Barooks, 66, to exchange wedding rings on Feb. 14, 2026. In December 2024, 65-year-old Willie Brooks was on the verge of deleting his mobile dating app.
But he decided to give the digital match-making process one more week. Then he met his now-wife, 54-year-old Camara. “The ironic thing about the app was I had been on it for six months, and I said, ‘Oh, this isn’t working. I’ll just chill. I’m just going to leave it alone. Whatever happens, good fortune happens, it’s going to have to happen another way,” Brooks said. “And that last week, she popped up. Come to find out, she said she was going to give it one more week.” The Brookses were married Saturday, Feb. 14, in a civil ceremony at Waterfront Park with a picturesque San Diego Bay as the backdrop. The ceremony was performed by San Diego County Assessor/Recorder/County Clerk Jordan Marks, who also holds the title of San Diego’s commissioner of civil marriages. Couples meet with staff inside the San Diego County Administration Center to complete paperwork for civil wedding ceremonies on Valentine's Day. The Valentine’s Day marriage ceremony was one of more than 200 anticipated to be performed by the county clerk’s office during a special event from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the County Administration Center at 1600 Pacific Highway in downtown San Diego. “We’ve got some beautiful love stories. The kids that sat next to each other in cubicles. We have Marines that met in training. And we have those folks that are having their second time at love,” Marks said. “And my team, everybody that’s working today on a Saturday. We’re not normally open. We’re not closing our doors on love this Saturday. We said we’re going to open up for love today. They all volunteered to be here because we love love.” The popular event was fully booked, with couples reserving all of the 150 available spots. The clerk’s office also anticipated that it would perform 50 additional ceremonies for walk-in appointments. Couples and their guests wait for their civil ceremonies at the County Clerk’s office inside the San Diego County Administration Center on Valentine's Day, Feb. 14, 2026. Couples paid $129 for a marriage license and $107 for a civil ceremony, and they were given their pick of an indoor or outdoor ceremony. The Waterfront Park option was preferred by most, given Saturday’s weather with clear skies and temperatures in the high 60s. Couples were also treated to free doughnuts from Peterson’s Donut Corner and roses. Several were surprised with $500 or $1,000 “honeymoon” gift cards courtesy of the San Diego Honda Dealers Helpful Honda People. For Cristina Michel and Maurice Basobas, the event offered an opportunity to get married in a simple-but-memorable way before their “big wedding” festivities next month. Cristina Michel, 30, and Maurice Basobas, 30, pose for a photo after their civil ceremony just outside the San Diego County Administration Center on Feb. 14, 2026. “I was in operations, and we were supposed to be on the sixth floor, but it was full, so they randomly put me on the eighth floor with all the tech people. And then we happened to be the only two young people on that floor,” Michel said. They bonded over their huskies, with Basobas eventually leaving Post-it notes, little drawings and chocolates at Michel’s desk. March 14, when they will celebrate their nuptials more formally with family and friends, will mark their sixth anniversary together as a couple. Basobas said he didn’t expect a lot from the Valentine’s Day event, but was pleasantly surprised by the overall experience and freebies, including a “just married” sticker that he planned to show off the remainder of the day.Jessica Valenzuela selects flowers for a bouquet at a Colibri Flower Studio pop-up stand outside the San Diego County Administration Center on Valentine's Day, where newlyweds could create and purchase floral arrangements. Pacific storm to hit San Diego County with heavy rain, wild winds, 10-foot waves and mountain snowPadres address needs by adding Griffin Canning and Nick CastellanosAfter second trial, jury convicts San Diego County deputy who seriously injured restrained inmatePadres notes: No set plan behind the plate; Yu Darvish update; virtually everyone in campOpinion: City Hall ignored warning signs in push for Balboa paid parking
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