The brides and grooms of Santo António were introduced to the community on Thursday, May 9, in a ceremony held in Pátio da Galé, in Lisbon, hosted by Serenella Andrade and attended by the mayor, Carlos Moedas. 16 couples were selected from the 37 applications received. They will be the stars of Lisbon's most popular wedding, promoted by the local authority and organized by EGEAC. As usual, the Santo António Weddings will take place on the eve of Santo António's Day, in Lisbon Cathedral, which will host 11 couples, and in the Noble Hall of Paços do Conselho, for five civil weddings. This year's brides and grooms are aged between 24 and 48 and live in 10 of the city's parishes. They include administrative assistants, shopkeepers, drivers, teachers, lawyers, engineers and caretakers. Layanne Carmo, 25, and Dyego Sena, 24, say that their "destinies were written in the maternity ward". She is a caretaker and he is a general services assistant. Flávia Abadesso, a 33-year-old childminder, and Ricardo Costa, a 42-year-old lawyer, have adopted the motto "always be honest". Patrícia Fernandes, 38, a counter assistant, and João Fernandes, a 45-year-old driver, emphasize that they have always fought and succeeded. "I found you" is the motto of Vera Ferreira, 35, who is currently unemployed, and Pedro Correia, 32, who is a courier coordinator. Couple number 5, Emília Cruz, 48, a social worker, and administrative assistant Rodrigo Tiago Pacheco, 45, know that "this is a good time" to celebrate their union. Diana Ferreira, 34, unemployed, and João Martins, 34, a TVDE driver, will also get married at Santo António. This is their "dance". "Forever" is what Lídia Rodrigues, who works in Human Resources, and Nuno Carrasqueira, a 35-year-old IT consultant, hope their marriage, celebrated on June 12, will be. "Nothing shakes" the love of couple number 8, Cristiana Eusébio, a 25-year-old analyst, and Miguel Eusébio, a 31-year-old shopkeeper. Couple number 9, in turn, emphasizes that "Love always wins". They are Vanessa Teixeira, a 33-year-old education assistant, and Bruno Matos, a 43-year-old taxi driver. "Discovering happiness" is what Letícia Salomoni de Sá, a 42-year-old engineer, and Ihor Brazhnk, a 46-year-old administrative technician, are doing. Travel lovers, 25-year-old shopkeeper Joana Crispim and 26-year-old Physical Education teacher Diogo Lamas are also preparing to tie the knot under the blessing of patron saint Santo António. For Inês Silva, a 30-year-old unemployed woman, and Hernâni Pereira, a 32-year-old operations assistant, "family is the most important thing". Ana Pereira, a 32-year-old data processing operator, and André Azevedo, a 30-year-old firefighter, are ready to "face whatever comes together". "Boundless passion" is what Vera Tendeiro, a 40-year-old administrative assistant, and Filipe Silva, a 39-year-old IT consultant, experience. Rita Albuquerque, a 30-year-old quality technician, and Luís Almeida, a 32-year-old IT technician, guarantee that they were "born and raised for each other". For Cláudia Loureiro, a 30-year-old shopkeeper, and António Ribeiro, a 36-year-old Personal Trainer, the motto is "may it be eternal while it lasts". Launched in 1958, the Santo António Weddings were interrupted exactly 50 years ago by the April Revolution, and were resumed in 1997 by Lisbon City Council, which started to include civil weddings. Since then, 400 weddings have been held, 275 religious and 125 civil. Read Also: Fewer babies were born in February this year than in the same period in 2023 (Portuguese version)