Shane Van Styn ties the knot in intimate backyard wedding before New Zealand celebrations in 2025

Former mayor of Greater Geraldton Shane Van Styn has spontaneously tied the knot with his now wife, Jazzlyn Leonard, after the pair found out their baby is due around the same time as their planned destination wedding. The pair got hitched on Friday, July 5, 31 days after they ordered their marriage certificate. The now Mrs Van Styn said: “In Australia you have to order the certificate 30 days before your wedding. We got married 31 days after ordering it.” At the intimate ceremony 20 of the couple’s nearest and dearest gathered in the garden of their Geraldton home, with 90 minutes notice. The plan was to have Mrs Van Styn’s mum and brother in attendance, as well as the groom’s parents. “My parents are divorced so people were asking questions as to why they were here together. And I had to get off work. So I’d say about 18 of the 20 had 90 minutes notice of the wedding. Jazz’s mate came up so it wasn’t just Shano’s mates,” Mr Van Styn said. The pair joked about the highlights of the day, including the backdrop of the Batavia Motor Inne not being an issue thanks to its demolition earlier in the year. “I forgot about vows until about half an hour before,” Mrs Van Styn said, whose heartfelt but improvised words saw her compare her now husband to KFC. “He’s always a good idea.” Initially working towards a January 2025 wedding in Mrs Van Styn’s hometown of Ashburton, on the South Island of New Zealand — they have pushed that date back to December 2025 after they found out Mrs Van Styn was pregnant. “The baby is due the week before or after the wedding,” Mr Van Styn said. The December ceremony will give the pair time to organise themselves and settle into parenthood, with Mrs Van Styn joking breastfeeding as the secret sauce for weight loss. “I’ve already bought the dress so, I really need to fit into that,” she said.