To have and to Hayles: Young couple go the distance to say ‘I do’
“I knew he was the one when I got diagnosed with breast cancer and thought he would have no desire to stay. But instead, he chose to walk with me through the entire journey,” Lewanna Harrison reflected. Now breast cancer-free, she and her beloved, Mickeal Hayles, celebrated this remarkable victory by embarking on a new journey as husband and wife.
The two met by chance over a pre-pandemic Heroes Day holiday weekend in a parking lot. Living testimony of being in the right place at the right time, Lewanna was parked on the grounds of Devon House with the intention of treating herself to one of her favourite foods.
While savouring, she noticed an unfamiliar face leaning on his car. Mickeal was on location with friends, but shared that he felt like the odd man out, so he walked back to his car. And it was there that he saw her.
He stood there the entire time, watching her enjoy her treat. Intrigued by her beauty, he patiently waited, hoping for the right moment to make his move. When she exited the car to dispose of the remains, he jumped at the opportunity to strike up a conversation upon her return to her vehicle. “He approached me by saying, ‘You couldn’t share?’”
She explained in their verbal banter that she lived overseas, so it wouldn’t work out. But he was determined. When the two exchanged numbers, he realised that she did, in fact, live in a different area code, based on the digits offered.
“I went home that night and said, ‘God, if you make me get this girl, me a go settle, me a go change mi mind, and me a go get married.’ From day one, she sparked something in me. There was something special about her, and I knew she was the one,” he revealed.
Despite their fateful first meeting, the first date didn’t follow the ‘over the moon, head over heels’ storyline. What it did highlight, however, was a refreshing and exciting bond that could not be confined to a place or space.
Lewanna had not been on a date in years, so she had no idea what to expect. All she knew was that she grew anxious as the occasion drew closer. “He asked me where’d I like to go, and I told him anywhere decent, and so he chose Ribbiz Waterfront. He had never been, but I have, so I knew this was not going to be as romantic as I thought. As I guessed, we ended up leaving after having a drink and spent the night in a parking lot in New Kingston, getting to know each other.”
After courting long-distance for a little over a year, Mickeal put his plans of making Lewanna his wife into ‘engaging’ action. Because they are both family-oriented, he wanted both sides and close friends present for the grand occasion. The day before Lewanna’s mother’s birthday, he planned a dinner at Gloria’s in Port Royal for the maternal figures from both parties to meet. It came as a big surprise to the birthday queen and her daughter, the soon-to-be Mrs Hayles.
Mickeal, who plays the trumpet, brought in a saxophonist to assist with the musical selection, “I was already there setting up, so I sent her my location. Everyone was seated for dinner, but there was a delay in the videographer. So I came up with an excuse that the fish was peppery, so [that] I could reach out to him.”
Once the videographer finally arrived, Mickeal ran with the same strategy of overpowering spices and made his way to the videographer and saxophonist. The musician returned with trumpet in hand, along with his trusty team, playing A Thousand Years by Christina Perri for the love of his life. After serenading her, he got down on one knee and asked Lewanna to be his wife. “The best surprise! It was a night I will never forget; very romantic,” she added.
Growing up, Lewanna dreamed of having a big wedding, celebrating love with family and close friends. But the COVID-19 protocols and restrictions quickly brought the beautiful bride-to-be back to reality. She enlisted the assistance of a wedding planner, noting that the area wasn’t her cup of tea. Where she came into play was in choosing her wedding dress.
Having an idea of what she wanted as far as style goes, her heart’s desire was to get married in a pink dress, to commemorate conquering the big C. “I went to three bridal stores, tried on one pink dress and loved the colour, but not the design. So I went to New York and walked the streets of Brooklyn and ended up in Pantora Bridal,” where she said yes to a gorgeous blush pink dress.
On October 16, before God and in the presence of family and close friends, Lewanna and Mickeal exchanged vows, promising to have and to ‘Hayle’ forever. Caymanas Golf Course was transformed into a majestic matrimonial site, and the couple, basking in enchanted nuptial revelry, could not have been happier about the big day. “The wedding day was beautiful,” Mrs Hayles declared, while her husband revealed, “It was more than I expected. It was untraditional, musically inclined because Lewanna is a singer and I’m a musician, so we had a band, and we performed. It was just a fun day, filled with laughter and love.”
The newly-weds shared their first official dance as husband and wife to a romantic John Legend classic, You and I.