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A virtual connection - The Azodos Love Story

Published:Thursday | July 19, 2018 | 12:00 AM
Dr Uchendu Azodo (left) and Gail Hamilton happily ever after.
Azodo Wedding
Azodo Wedding
Newlyweds Gail Hamilton and Uchendu Azodo make their way down the aisle.
Azodo Wedding
Uchendu Azodo before he unites with his love.
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Gail Hamilton and Dr Uchendu Azodo led busy lives, and the new-age dating experience brought them to a virtual love connection that led to 'I do'.

Azodo was a physician, who worked long hours, and Hamilton travelled extensively for her job, and while both would have liked to date, it was difficult for them to find someone amid their busy schedules. So they took to the Internet seeking assistance with finding someone with online dating and, as fate would have it, they met.

They decided to go on a date and the first date lasted seven hours, the connection was even more powerful then, and they have been inseparable ever since. In fact, Azodo told Hamilton that he saw himself marrying her from that night. His affections started to grow towards her because despite her travels, she knew how to keep her friends and family close. He felt a part of her sacred unit and admits that she knows exactly how to make someone feel cared for.

Hamilton liked how honest and open Azodo was from day one. He was open about his schedule and even though his job demanded so much of his time, he still made her feel like a priority. She knew that he was the one because despite him being Nigerian and very traditional, as the firstborn child, he was not hesitant to introduce her - his non-Nigerian partner and state his intentions for her to his mother.

"I knew Gail was the one because I'd been through a lot in my life and my previous relationship, and it was the first time in a long while I felt like someone was genuinely on my side and had my best intentions in mind always. She always finds a way to make whatever may seem difficult or a source of strife something we can solve together as a couple. I'd truly found a partner that was equally yoked," Azodo explained what about Hamilton that captivated him.

For the proposal, he did everything to not let her figure it out. Hamilton had returned to Jamaica, her place of birth from the home she shared with Azodo in Miami to speak at an entrepreneurship conference. It was the week of her birthday so she decided to make a vacation of it and had him come to Jamaica to experience more of where she was from and spend time with her family. They later went to Negril and spent time at the Cliff Hotel which made way for a beautiful experience and what Hamilton thought would be a beautiful engagement. But it did not happen.

Azodo said that he did not want to make the proposal a clichÈ so he went against proposing there, knowing that she might have expected it. He wanted to surprise her even though her detective ways made it difficult to. When they returned home, they had a beautiful dinner and it was while unpacking and preparing for work the next morning that he reached over the nightstand and took up the box that had the ring.

"It took me completely by surprise. At this point, it was about 10 p.m. and we'd just come back from what I thought would be the proposal trip. Nonetheless, the moment was perfect and a great way to end the trip with the beginning of our future right in the home we shared together," she admitted.

When it came to the wedding, they had persons living outside of Jamaica flown in three days before the ceremony as they had lead-up events to the special day which included a traditional Nigerian ceremony, excursions to Dunn's River Falls and Martha Brae, and wedding-morning brunch. The official ceremony that was decorated and planned by Krafted by Design was held at Bellefield Great House and Gardens, Montego Bay. Everything had to have a touch of nature, thus, there were heavy notes of greenery, glass, and wood, while the aisle was dressed with baby's breath and the tables had floor-length ivy-and-rose table runners. All with custom wood-engraved name-place settings for guests.

The day, unfortunately, had to come to an end, but it was with fine style with entertainment provided by 876sounds that took them to their ever after.