Bride: Deneisha S. Fisher, MD, 39, Obstetrician
Groom: L. Wayne Edwards, 47, Small Business Owner
Married On: 7/21/13
Wedding Location: Half Moone Cruise and Celebration Center in Norfolk, VA
Wedding Style: Traditional Elegance
Love Heals
When Deneisha’s ex-boyfriend was diagnosed with metastatic cancer in January of 2011, she wanted to support him in any way that she could. She began to do so and then learned heartbreaking news regarding their relationship that would normally make a woman want to just walk away. However, her conscience would not let her abandon her ex in his time of need. “I decided to support him throughout his treatment process,” she shares. “Wayne, who was my ex’s casual acquaintance at the time, visited him intermittently. In January of 2012 during one of my ex’s many hospital admissions, Wayne and I met for the first time. My ex always told me stories about how supportive Wayne had been, so it was nice to finally attach a face to the name.”
After their first meeting in the hospital, Deneisha and Wayne’s encounters were always brief and infrequent. Deneisha says despite that fact, when they did chat, she and Wayne always had interesting conversations. In April of 2012, after a long, courageous fight, sadly, Deneisha’s ex succumbed to his illness. A few weeks after the memorial service, Wayne invited her to meet him for a glass of wine at a local restaurant. “I totally did not think anything of it,” she recalls. “It wasn’t a date and he was not a potential boyfriend in my mind. I needed to vent to someone that day and he volunteered to listen.” And, that he did. They talked for three hours over one glass of wine and were finally able to get to know one another on a more personal level. “We discovered we had a lot in common,” she shares. “Wayne turned out to be the total opposite of what I thought of him. Whenever Wayne would visit my ex, he was always very serious and stoic. All of a sudden, out came this Martin Lawrence-type personality that kept me laughing until my stomach hurt.” A week later, Wayne called and asked if he could take Deneisha out on a date. “He said he realized it was a bit awkward but once he heard the entire story about what had actually transpired between my ex and I, he insisted that I am too good of a woman not to be part of his life in some capacity.” That’s when they officially became a couple, and a year later they were standing at the altar hand-in-hand.
Lay With Me
A few weeks before Wayne officially proposed, he and Deneisha had discussed marriage and decided they were going to be husband and wife one day. Because of this, she wasn’t expecting a formal proposal. Although, that didn’t stop Wayne from planning one. “I was scheduled to run a half marathon soon thereafter, and the night before my race, we were hanging out in my family room with friends when Wayne disappeared for a while and called for me to join him in my bedroom,” says Deneisha. “When I entered the room, he was stretched out on my bed on a mountain of pillows. He asked me to relax with him. Before I agreed to lay down, I pulled all of the pillows off the bed. The ring box was hidden beneath them!” Deneisha was shocked and speechless, but totally on cloud nine.
See their lovely wedding day and share their love!
Photos: Keith Cephus Photography