Get your family better involved in the wedding preparations by sharing some roles and responsibilities with your aunts and uncles. While siblings and cousins are often included in the wedding preparations, aunts and uncles can also take part of the planning and guest management. Aside from being witnesses to your wedding, aunts and uncles can be assigned wedding duties to make the day a little less stressful for the couple.

If the groom cannot have one or both of his parents during the wedding ceremony, the closest elder relatives must step in to fill the gap. In most cases, it is the aunt and uncle of the groom with whom he is closest that steps in. They can accompany the groom down the aisle or just wait at the altar, depending on the couple’s preferences. The aunt and the uncle can also be stand-ins for the family portrait session that takes place after the wedding ceremony.

A greeter is someone who serves as a host or hostess of the party. Typically, this can be a close friend, an aunt or or an uncle that wasn’t included in the bridal entourage. It is ideal that the greeter is not part of the entourage, so that the greeter can continue with his hosting duties, such as welcoming the guests.

For double weddings or weddings of two siblings, the uncle can stand in place of the father of one of the grooms. In cases wherein the groom and his sibling is getting married in one ceremony, the next closest elder relatives must stand in place of the parents. This means that either the groom or his sibling gets to walk down the aisle with his aunt and uncle in tow. The aunt and uncle need not stand in during the family portrait session afterward.

The groom’s aunt and uncle can be part of the wedding entourage as one of the candle, cord or veil sponsors. There are no rules on who should be the couple’s sponsors; if the groom feels particularly close to one of his uncles or aunts, the relative can be a part of the wedding entourage. They can also do some readings during the ceremony or help the guests find their seats during the reception.