Love knew no boundaries for Jeanay Bullock from Norfolk, Virginia, and Marcus Hampton from Clinton, Maryland. Their journey, even though states apart, led them to falling in love and choosing Jamaica as the perfect destination to seal their vows.

Jeanay and Marcus met in July of 2020 through the online dating platform BLK. After exchanging messages and getting to know each other, the two eventually met face-to-face. When Jeanay realised that she’d be in Marcus’s neck of the woods, they set up a meeting in the most innocuous of places: the parking lot of a Safeway grocery store. With some initial nerves about the possibility of being catfished online, Jeanay was relieved that Marcus turned out to be exactly who he claimed to be.

Apprehension allayed! Marcus got into Jeanay’s car and had what they’d later describe as one of the longest car conversations they’ve ever had. “We talked for hours, and after getting to know one another, it almost felt like we’d known each other for years,” Marcus told Tuesday Style Vows. The date did not, however, end as spectaculary as it had commenced. Let’s just say that Marcus had a little too much to drink and was unable to drive home. It was left to Jeanay to take him home. Marcus was suitably impressed albeit mortified.

“The following day, when I sobered up and wrestled with my feelings of embarrassment, I apologised to Jeanay. Much to my surprise, she reassured me that it was one of the best nights she had experienced in a long time.” Indeed, the incident only deepened their bond and solidified their love.

The two would spend many a vacation in Jamaica, where the allure of the island’s beauty captivated their hearts. Two years later, Marcus knew the time was right to take their love to the next level. And in October, during a special dinner at Capital Grille in Baltimore, Maryland, shared with Jeanay’s daughter Jazlynn Williams, Marcus proposed. Seemingly oblivious to the other diners he went down on one knee and asked Jeanay to be his wife. Overwhelmed with joy Jeanay’s “Yes!” was applauded by all in attendance.

Here Comes The Bride

The lawns of Rose Hall Great House in Montego Bay served as the picturesque venue for Jeanay and Marcus’s nuptials on June 10, 2023. Friends and family flew in from the United States to celebrate the beginning of the couple’s next chapter. The cobalt blue, ivory, and champagne setting created by the Saint T Event Design team further enhanced the already stunning location. The sounds of Major’s Why I Love You announced the bride’s arrival. She was escorted up the aisle by doting dad Gary Bullock and stepdad Calvin Howell. Emotions ran high as the bride, stunning in a white mermaid gown accentuated with diamond embellishments from Matopeda Atelier, Lagos, complete with a cathedral train, and clutching a posy of gorgeous white roses, flashed a reassuring smile at her bridegroom, who stood dapper in a cobalt blue suit designed by Miguel Wilson, Oxon Hill, Maryland.

Wedding officiant Christian Aaron led the bride and groom through the ceremony.

The Reception

The reception continued at the Rose Hall Great House, where the newly-weds made their grand entrance to RNB by Young Dolph featuring Megan Thee Stallion. Handling the formalities was deejay Sanjay, who invited the couple to the dance floor for their first dance as husband and wife to the soul-stirring melodies of Caught Up In The Rapture by Anita Baker. The team at the Rose Hall Great House handled food and beverage. Throughout the evening, speeches were given by the newly-weds’ family and friends touching on different elements of their lives. Then the dance floor opened and remained alive all night long.

Curaçao was the honeymoon destination for the newly-weds.

Photographer: Merrick Cousley