New Hampshire Same-Sex Couples Prepare for Civil Unions

listen:

Ruth Smith and Beth McGuinn walk into town hall in Canterbury.
1049 open (Ruth-we’re here to do our thing..Clerk-I need photo ids and then I need you ladies to fill this out for me)
Canterbury’s Town Clerk was expecting the couple – they’re the first in town to obtain a civil union license.
As Smith reads the details of the form to McGuinn, they’re both smiling.
(it says state of NH, worksheet for preparing intention of civil union..print plain with ink (laughs)..1050 oh I want to be person A..
Smith and McGuinn have been together for 17 years.
At exactly 12:01 on New Year’s Eve, they plan to be joined in a civil union – and Beth McGuinn says they’ll celebrate at home with a small group of friends.
1035 2:29 we have worked for 20 years to have government recognition of our relationship, although this is not what we had hoped for by any means, we will take advantage of any opportunity we have to be recognized as a couple.
McGuinn and Smith are founding members of the group New Hampshire Freedom to Marry…so a civil union comes with mixed emotions for them.
The two had a commitment ceremony in 1993, so in their minds, and in the eyes of their friends and family, they are married.
Smith says that ceremony was a much more significant event than their civil union ceremony will be.
1038 1:46 we had 90 people with us 14 years ago, it was a wedding, it wasn’t legally recognized as a wedding, but it was..so we didn’t want to duplicate that, we’ve done that, but we will be renewing our vows because we felt like this would be an opportunity to do that.
But legally, civil unions bring same-sex couples like Smith and McGuinn rights they don’t currently have.
Smith says there’s one small benefit she’s been looking forward to since their commitment ceremony 14 years ago.
1040 (we wanted to be able to put our wills and powers of attorney in a safe deposit box and so we went to the banks where we had our joint savings accounts and I went to open a box, and we were told we weren’t able to do that as a couple.)
Smith recognizes that opening a joint safety deposit box is a small step but to her it’s an important one.
1040 1:21 I want to be able to go to places like our bank and say okay, I have my civil union now, you can’t do that to me anymore.
Civil unions grant couples more than 400 rights under state law.
Attorney Michelle Granda is with Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders, or GLAD.
1:17 they can be first in line when first counts, for things like funeral decision making, managing the estate when one passes away, different places in the law where they give rights to next of kin, same sex partners will now count as family in ways they never did before.
That’s especially significant for Keryn Kriegle and June Benard of Dover.
They have two sons; Spencer, who’s ten, and Josh, who’s 13.
Right now, Kriegle and Benard have co-guardianship of their sons.
Keryn Kriegle says that will change as soon as she and Benard have their civil union.
1026 :30 we’ve been waiting for the opportunity to enter into a legal union and for me to be able to adopt the kids at the same time so we’re really looking forward to that
Only in some counties, were same sex couples able to legally adopt without a civil union.
Benard says the process for Kriegle, the non-biological parent, to adopt was arduous, costly and require home visits.
1031 :28 previously it was going to pretty high expenses to try to get her to adopt them, and I would have to give up my parenting rights for like five minutes, while we actually both apply to co-adopt them, which was a very strange and uncomfortable thing to have to do in order to have them be adopted by her
With a civil union, the process might be easier.
GLAD attorney Michelle Granda says civil unions help solidify the non-biological parent’s rights.
9:16 “they enter the civil union, they become legally a step parent and can now adopt under a different provision of New Hampshire law.”
13 year old Josh Benard Kriegle says he looks forward to his parent’s civil union – but can’t imagine that an adoption will change much for him.
1031“They’re already my mom so it won’t really feel any different and I probably won’t notice much differences because I don’t really have to worry about all that legal mumbo jumbo stuff cause I’m not an adult yet, so it will pretty much feel the same but I’m glad that they’ll have more rights and stuff because I think they deserve them”
His ten year old brother Spencer is glad his moms are finally getting what they want.
1030 1:51 I think it’s a good thing because I’ve heard my mom saying they’ve kind of wanted this to happen for a long time, so yeah it’s a happy feeling that I feel.
Kriegle says both sons will be part of their civil union ceremony that they’re having next summer…they’re still in the planning process.
1028 :23 we’re trying to decide how big it’s going to be, it’s kind of amusing because some places charge a lot more to have a wedding, and a lot less if you’re having a party, and we’re considering if we had a reception in Maine and they don’t recognize that, do we just tell them it’s a party and pay 300 dollars instead of 1700 hundred dollars, (laughs) it’s quite amusing isn’t it.
Kriegel and Benard will be celebrating with their church first, on New Year’s Day.
The Unitarian Universalist church in Portsmouth is planning to mark the legalization of civil unions with a big party and worship service.
An even larger ceremony is expected on New Year’s Eve on the steps of the state house.
But while couples celebrate the milestone, they’re fully aware of how a civil union in New Hampshire doesn’t give them the more than 11-hundred federal rights afforded to married couples.
Again, Beth McGuinn
1038 more in my mind is what we still can’t do, at the end of the year, we’ll finish this tax year and we will, eventhough we’ve have had a civil union we will file separately and check single on the tax return because the federal government will not recognize our civil union and when we travel out of state, there may be a few states that recognize our civil union, but most will not.
Until they do, McGuinn says she’s going to continue to fight for legal marriage recognition. For NHPR news, I’m Amy Quinton.