By RODNEY HART

Herald-Whig Staff Writer

The bride and groom wore chaps. The pastor wore a T-shirt and jeans.

The ceremony was in a log cabin, as rustic and natural as it gets.

But the Saturday afternoon wedding of Diane Jordan and Randy Stump was as beautiful as a ceremony in a glass cathedral. Fifty guests watched as Jordan and Stump exchanged vows inside the "Lord's Cabin," the first couple to get married in the real Quinsippi Island church in 27 years.

"I'm ecstatic," said Jordan, who rolled up onto the island in a motorcycle sidecar driven by her new husband's friend, Vern Bronson.

"If you like something different, this is the way to go," said Stump, who lives in Liberty and works at Titan Wheel.

Jordan and Stump were going to get married in one of Quincy's Mississippi River parks, but flooding washed out those plans. They heard about the log cabin church and saw it for the first time last Sunday.

"I had no idea what it was like inside," Stump said. "We didn't have a rehearsal or anything, and it worked out great."

Stump showed up before the ceremony in his Harley-Davidson Super-Glide and said he was nervous awaiting his future bride. When she rolled over the bridge onto the island, Stump thought it would be a good idea not to see her before the wedding, so he put his bike in gear and cruised to the back by the church.

"I was wondering about that (one-lane) bridge," Jordan said. "But he (Bronson) told me he'd just use the eject button on the sidecar if I got scared."

Friends and family piled into the rustic cabin, dedicated in 1977 and built from logs from the 1800s. John Gebhardt, president of the Friends of the Log Cabins, said it was the first wedding in the church since Barbara and Wes Miller tied the knot in 1981.

The Rev. John Frank presided over the 20-minute ceremony and read from 1 Corinthians 13, the Bible's so-called "Great Love Chapter." He commended the couple for deciding to get married and setting a good example, and said the ceremony was "no small decision, making this declaration before family and friends."

The church features nine wooden benches and a simple area in the front where Jordan and Stump exchanged vows. There was no music or grandeur, just genuine emotion as the couple professed their love.

Frank told Stump to recite his vows but had to remind the nervous groom about one thing.

"Just make sure to look at her, not me," Frank said with a smile.

Jordan and Stump met last fall over the Internet -- "I asked her if she wanted to go for a motorcycle ride," Stump said -- and they attend Faith Assembly of God in Quincy. Jordan was given away by her son, Christopher Jordan, and her granddaughter, Mikayla Jordan.

They beamed with pride after walking out of the log cabin and getting hugs from friends and family. Jordan's mother, Barbara Malone, celebrated by going for a spin on a friend's motorcycle.

"She's 74 years young," the happy bride said. "She's on a mission!"

Then it was back on the bikes for the bride and groom and off to Barry for the reception.

Gebhardt said he hopes the log cabin church will be used for more events like Saturday's wedding. Friends of the Log Cabins formed in September, has a 12-member board and more than 60 members.

The church is one of seven log cabin village structures. The village was created in 1968 when the Quincy Area Chamber of Commerce adopted a plan on Quinsippi Island land donated by the Burlington Northern Railroad to the Quincy Park District. The group has spent three days cleaning up the cabins and has workdays planned Saturday and May 31.

-- rhart@whig.com/221-3370