No matter how difficult the times may be right now, love still prevails!
ESSENCE staff member Aisha Becker-Burrowes and her longtime love Kelton Cumberbatch got engaged during a romantic date night at home in April. Of course, they never planned to be quarantined while taking such a big step in their relationship, but Kelton’s well-planned proposal was “perfect” in Aisha’s eyes.
After their engagement photos went viral, the couple was approached by the Tamron Hall Show for a rare opportunity.
“The show came across our engagement announcement on social media and reached out to us asking if we wanted to have a virtual wedding,” says Aisha. “They asked us on Wednesday, and we got married on Monday. We had one day to decide and five days before the big day! [We had] no dress, no wedding bands, nothing!”
Aisha and Kelton, both avid travelers, were originally considering a destination wedding. They even had potential wedding venues and vendor contacts all mapped out in spreadsheets. However, they soon realized that life as we knew it may not return for a while due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are typically such planners,” says Aisha, “so it was totally out of character for us to spontaneously get married like that, especially in such a public way. But as crazy as it felt, we thought that perhaps it offered us and our loved ones a beautiful gift. What a precious thing to be able to share this with the world!”
Wearing a fabulous beaded wedding gown from Morilee, Aisha headed to the altar (set up in their living room!) to say “I do” to Kelton. Their mothers, Carla and Alma, were present for the ceremony, and family and friends tuned in via live stream.
Hall officiated the wedding remotely and was almost brought to tears as the couple exchanged their heartfelt vows. After the ceremony, Hall gifted the couple a 6-night honeymoon in Fiji. Winning!
Afterward, they turned their living room into a dance floor to host their virtual reception. “We asked our friends and family to dress up, prepare drinks, and even had two friends DJ for us,” Aisha says. “We popped champagne and cut cake while our friends toasted to us and shared fun memories. We had a dear friend that owns Luxe Booth Houston—a photo booth company—create a virtual photo booth just for us and our special day! The virtual party went on for almost four hours and we really had so much fun.”
Aisha and Kelton are planning an in-person celebration or a vow renewal when the world returns to normal, but are happy with their decision to marry virtually. “It was a blast and we felt so lucky to be able to celebrate with our friends and family more intimately in this incredibly unique way. “
Congratulation Aisha and Kelton! See the ceremony below, including footage of the couple planning their at-home ceremony from A-Z with event planner Jung Lee.