PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Leaders in the Pennsylvania catering industry have created a website to put pressure on the governor to allow events to be held safely throughout the state.
Jim Cohn, publisher of Midatlantic Events Magazine, says through Let PA Marry Us, people can contact lawmakers to push for guidelines that will help the events industry safely reopen.
"The emails go directly to the governor's office and let them know that this industry has been affected and let them know that it's not been the fault of the private event venues or the caterers or the people in the event industry," Cohn said.
Ben Fileccia with the Pennsylvania Restaurant and Lodging Association says the goal is to pressure the governor to create new guidance based on data.
"You can just click one button, and it will just send an email to Gov. Wolf and his people. There's also a way to just one click and it'll send a tweet to the governor."
Fileccia says if Pennsylvania doesn't open for events, they will still happen elsewhere, and they might not have regulated safety protocols.
"Pennsylvania hosts the sixth largest amount of weddings of anywhere in the country. It's over $2 billion in business, and we would like that money to stay here in PA," he said.
He says there are creative ways to host safe events. Perhaps instead of hiring a food truck, hiring a testing truck to come to your event will just be part of your typical wedding costs.
"I've worked with different companies that do on-site testing," Fileccia said.
Cohn says the impact goes beyond those who work in the industry.
"The point of that is to get people from the industry as well as the brides and grooms who have had to postpone or cancel their weddings to voice their opinions."
And he points out not all gatherings have the same level of safety.
"You gather at your house or you gather in places that have met the protocols that the CDC has put guidelines to."