Hello there

It was April 22, 2002 - Jackie's 30th birthday - and her friend Bridgett was treating her to a celebratory lunch. First, Bridgett had to pick up her paycheck, so Jackie went with her to the City Line Avenue nursing agency where she worked. Tyrell, the agency's staffing coordinator, was in the office. Tyrell looked at Jackie and proclaimed: "Nice boots!" She was wearing the same style of Timberlands that he was. "I knew he was flirting," Jackie said.

Four months later, Jackie, then a licensed practical nurse, was looking for a new job. Bridgett told her that Tyrell had recently become staffing coordinator at a Norristown agency and had said good things about it. So Jackie applied to the same place and was hired. Since Tyrell handled the nursing assignments, Jackie spoke to him frequently, and they soon became friends. Tyrell, who is now 29, and Jackie, now 37, would talk late at night about everything from their favorite movies to what rides Jackie should be sure her son, Demond, did not miss at an amusement park. Sometimes, Tyrell would ask, "Do you have any girlfriends for me?" and Jackie would laugh and say, "No, I don't have girlfriends for you. Get out of here!"

About two months after they began working together, Jackie had just finished an overnight shift when she called Tyrell. Again he asked if she could set him up with a friend. "I'm not going to hook you up with any of my friends!" Jackie blurted. "Why not?" Tyrell asked.

What Jackie said next surprised both of them: "Because I like you."

How does forever sound?

Tyrell proposed twice. In December 2007, Tyrell had only recently begun working as an RN - he had completed his degree from Temple the year before. So he bought Jackie a simple ring. On Christmas morning, Jackie opened her present, a pair of sneakers. The ring box was inside the shoe box.

Jackie opened the little box, and waited. And waited. "Well?" she prompted. "Oh!" Tyrell said. "Will you marry me?"

Tyrell wasn't pleased with that first ring. Jackie liked it - it was the proposal she found lacking. "I didn't have a story to tell when people ask, 'How did he do it?'" she said. "It was not dreamy."

In February 2009, Tyrell and Jackie were at Hickman Temple in West Philadelphia, at a ceremony honoring Tyrell's grandfather Moses Thompson for his decades of service to the church. Soon after Thompson's portion of the service, Tyrell excused himself, then sent Jackie a text that he needed to go home and change his clothes. He came back 45 minutes later. Then, after the celebration, Tyrell said he had to stop at Acme to pick up something for his mom. On the way home, he said he realized he left his ATM card at the store.

Jackie thought they were going back to get it, but Tyrell drove instead to the parking lot of the nursing agency where he had complimented her boots. Tyrell parked and walked around to Jackie's door. "I wanted to bring you to the spot where we first met and ask you if you would marry me," he said.

Tyrell gave Jackie a second ring, one much more to his liking. There had never been a reason for him to change his clothing or stop at the store; Tyrell left the church to run to Center City and pick up the ring. Tyrell did not lose his ATM card, either. But he did give Jackie an engagement story she enjoys telling.

At home

The couple lives in Overbrook Park with kids Demond, 11, and Jordan, 3.

At work

Tyrell is a nurse in the burn ICU at Temple University Hospital. Jackie, who became an RN in May 2008, works for Select Nurse Staffing in Germantown.

It was so them

Tyrell and Jackie married at Hickman Temple AME Church. Tyrell's mother and aunt were both married there, and Jackie attended a Hickman Temple preschool program, so the church is filled with family memories. They were married by Hickman pastor Jocelyn K. Hart, and then held a reception for 130 at the Merion in Cinnaminson.

Jackie loves her ivory, silk and satin, strapless, A-line dress with crystals and a train. But she had to be persuaded to buy it. Ever practical, Jackie started the gown search determined not to spend much money on a dress that she was only wearing for a few hours. But on the Priscilla of Boston Web site was a dress she couldn't get out of her mind - despite the price tag.

Tyrell convinced her that she absolutely should have the dress she loved. "I broke the bank and bought the dress," she said.

Awestruck

Tyrell and Jackie wrote their own vows, and kept them secret from each other until their wedding day. "When I said mine, everybody else was blocked out, and it was just Tyrell and I standing there and talking to one another," Jackie said. She kept her words conversational, telling Tyrell how much and why she loves him. Tyrell's vows were "a little more biblical," Jackie said. "He promised to take care of me, and to be a provider."

Discretionary spending

A bargain: The take-home wedding cake containers. "I bought regular cake boxes from a restaurant Web site. I refused to get cute ones," Jackie said. She spent $17 on 200 boxes, saving nearly $200. And then, at no charge, wedding planner Deidre Gray surprised Jackie with labels that matched the wedding decor and bore the couples' names and wedding date.

The splurge: Jackie's dress, of course. But also, the couple hired a Rolls Royce Phantom to take them to the reception. The wedding party got a limo ride, and Jackie said the couple could have made due with that one car, with a $1,000 fee. They spent an extra $2,900 on the Phantom.

The getaway

Four days in Paris, six days in Rome.

Behind the Scenes

Officiant

The Rev. Jocelyn K. Hart of Hickman Temple AME Church, Philadelphia

Venue

Hickman Temple and The Merion, Cinnaminson, N.J.

Catering

The Merion

Photography

Paul Roebuck of RoebuckPhoto, Landsdale

Music

James from One 2 One Productions, Phoenixville

Dress

Priscilla of Boston, Wynnewood store

Invitations

Scrollweddinginvitations.com of India

Planner

Deidre Gray, Always A Positive Image, Jenkintown

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