The Allens celebrate love renewed

Choosing to care, honour, and cherish each other came easily to Derry-Ann Morgan and Michael Allen, who overcame difficulties to tie the knot in 2020. Sadly, things soon took a turn after ‘I do’, and they found themselves having to lean on their vows. Despite the challenges, they triumphed, bringing their foundation of devotion and support to a summer vow renewal in St Mary, where they celebrated their love as Mr and Mrs Allen once again.

The duo first met in a professional capacity in 2016. Michael was in the business of offering continuing education certificates, while Derry-Ann, then a notary public in the nursing field, signed up with her mother.

Although they were already acquainted, it wasn’t until Derry-Ann became a Mary Kay sales representative that they began to see each other in a romantic light.

“I would hit up persons in my contacts and try to sell products to them. Michael became one of my regular customers, but he would ‘trust’ the products and wait until he saw me in person to pay me. He probably still owes me money to this day,” she told Island Wedding, laughing.

For Michael, who is a pastor, this was merely a strategic move to see more of Derry-Ann’s radiant beauty in person. “I had taken an interest in her. So this was an ideal way of seeing and interacting with her. I’d pay what I owed, make another order and put plans in place to pay her once I saw her again.”

As she transitioned from cosmetology to philanthropy, Michael always offered a helping hand, going above and beyond to support her charity initiative, The KaGra Foundation.

“I didn’t read too much into that because at the time, I thought he was married. And I respected that. I later found out that he was getting divorced in 2018 when he asked me to notarise some paperwork,” she said.

From there, Derry-Ann, who was also a divorcee, became his confidante and counsellor, guiding him on the right path toward healing.

Michael’s acts of chivalry didn’t go unnoticed by Derry-Ann’s friend, who pointed out his affection to her. “She spoke about the way he looked at me and all the things he had done to support my dream, like volunteering to feed the homeless with me, running errands. You name it, he did it,” Derry-Ann recounted.

The moment she came face to face with her feelings, she immediately spoke to Michael about them, who confirmed that the spark was in fact mutual, “I told him that I had the perfect girl for him. When he asked who, I boldly responded, ‘Me’.”

Michael noted, “I was trying to lay a foundation for the future. We had enjoyed each other’s company and had even met each other’s parents, family and friends. So it was only a matter of time. But she did make the first move,” he said.

They got engaged in August 2019, with plans for a big wedding in March the following year. But that changed with the pandemic. Despite recommendations to postpone, the couple felt that, in such unpredictable times, there was no better moment to seal their love before God.

The beautiful bride invited 15 guests to a small all-black wedding on July 18, 2020. “Because this was COVID-19 time, and we had all been [in] lock down for like six months eating with nowhere to go, I figured that we gained weight. So I invited everyone to wear black,” she added.

A few months later, the couple welcomed a baby girl. Already a mother, Derry-Ann recalled her previous pregnancy being difficult, but she was grateful for her bouncing blessing.

‘IN SICKNESS AND IN HEALTH’

Experiencing motherhood in a new light was daunting, but nothing prepared Derry-Ann for the trauma that followed her labour.

“Everything was going really well until I started having these massive headaches. I don’t know how to explain the pain. It felt like somebody was beating me on my head with a hammer,” she explained. She went to urgent care and received medication, but there was no improvement. Then she realised that there was no feeling in the left side of her face.

While on a call with her mother, she noticed a shift in range of motion, “I went to use the bathroom. And as I went to put the phone on the face basin, I missed. I knew what that meant; my hand-eye coordination was gone.”

She was referred to a neurologist for an appointment later that week, but Derry-Ann didn’t think she would make it. By the power of prayer, she walked into the doctor’s office, where she was told she had suffered a stroke. All this while she had a three-week-old baby at home.

After a week in the hospital, she returned home with COVID-19, only to pass the virus to her husband, who also developed pneumonia.

“He passed out and was admitted to the hospital. Then checked himself out ahead of time because he wanted to take care of me at home. During all of this, our daughter was staying with family and friends while we both recovered, which we are eternally grateful for,” highlighted Derry-Ann, whose recovery included relearning how to walk, talk, read, and drive.

Nursing each other back to health, the couple soon realised that they were actually living out their wedding vows.

“When we said, for better or for worse, for richer or poorer and in sickness and in health, we had already been through that together. So when our five-year anniversary came around, we wanted to honour our journey with a celebration of love,” she shared.

VOW RENEWAL

On July 19, among lush greenery overlooking the breathtaking ocean, Derry-Ann and Michael renewed their vows at Villa Viento, located in Tower Isle, St Mary.

The beautiful bride walked up the aisle in her white wedding dress to meet her dapper groom, dressed in a tan suit.

“Celebrating our love for the second time was excellent,” Michael said. While Mrs Morgan-Allen revealed, “Reciting the vows the second time around meant something completely different than the first set of vows. And that’s why it was so important to have this vow renewal. Our guests enjoyed the wedding. And we were happy that everyone showed up to support us.”

Her biggest takeaway was knowing she had chosen the right life partner and soulmate. And, Michael wholeheartedly agreed.

krysta.anderson@gleanerjm.com