Stylish & Sophisticated Outdoor Engagement Session in Alabama: Gloria + Deric

Gloria & Deric’s chance meeting was indeed unanticipated and unexpected.

The pair met on Christmas Eve in 2011, during Gloria’s shift at Macy’s. As expected, during the busy holiday season the store was brimming with customers and Gloria (who was working in the in the Levi’s department) was experiencing the brunt of the holiday rush as she assisted a long line of customers. However, amidst the shoppers, she noticed a tall, handsome gentleman who too, was assisting a customer. “One of my customers needed to know what size belt her son would need for his size and it just so happened Deric was kind to let her know that he could assist her in determining the correct size belt for her son. I thought to myself, what a friendly and kind gentlemen he was to assist the needs of a customer!” shares Gloria.

While the kind gesture of this handsome stranger surely helped Gloria lessen her line, following his own shopping trip, she noticed he too had added to her line by patiently standing there as well. “I began to get nervous, because he was such a tall, handsome man and that just automatically made me nervous and shy. [But] there was something about him as I had never felt this type of connection before – it was a different type of energy” says Gloria.

Once it came time for Deric to check out, Gloria sweetly (but slightly nervously) greeted him with a smile, politely asking if he had found everything he was looking for. After replying “yes”, Deric next asked “so, what are you getting me for Christmas, Gloria?”. “I responded by saying ‘I don’t know (with a smile of course!) and I followed up with the same question ‘so, what are you getting me for Christmas?’ He responded ‘Gloria, I will need to learn those things’, [and] I just gave him a smile” says Gloria. Indeed, the flirtation was real!

As Deric left her department, Gloria paused to daydream to herself, ‘I think he was flirting with me’ and hoped to see the handsome stranger again and later continued work on the extremely busy day. “I saw him again several times near my department and I started to wonder if he would come back over once I was in the clear of the long line of customers” says Gloria. However, after noticing the mystery man walking in-and-out of the store, casually browsing in nearby departments several times, without an additional approach – Gloria assumed she was mistaking a customer being friendly for a flirtations moment.

But before the thought exited her mind, her department’s phone rang. As she picked up and began her standard greeting – the only thing she heard was, “Gloria, this is Deric write my number down.” And of course she obliged, quickly grabbing a piece of paper to write down his number! “I repeated the phone number to him, to absolutely make sure that I had written down his number correctly because I was for sure to be calling him back!” says Gloria. As soon as her work day ended, an excited Gloria phoned Deric. “When I called, he answered and this made my day complete. I was so excited and knew that I would be talking to him again” says Gloria.

After a week, Gloria decided to dial Deric again and this time the pair shared a long conversation. “It appeared that he was so happy to hear from me. Over the next upcoming weeks, we found some time from our very busy work schedule and made a habit of talking by phone to each other quite frequently. I enjoyed every moment of talking, laughter and especially the overall conversation” says Gloria.

And what started as a simple flirtatious moment between complete strangers on the eve of Christmas, on a busy Macy’s floor, has blossomed into the greatest gift of love. The pair are now engaged and have decided to celebrate their upcoming wedding by shooting this stylish and sophisticated outdoor engagement session with photographer and coterie member, Andre Brown. Fellow coterie member, ValiaRose Events is also assisting this beautiful couple with planning for their joyous occasion. Scroll on for more!

Bride-to-Be: Gloria Turner
Groom-to-Be: Deric Garrett
Wedding date: 06/25/2016
Wedding location: The Harbert Center in Birmingham, AL
Engagement shoot location: Auburn, AL

What did you two do on your first date!
Gloria: After nearly a month had gone by, Deric invited me out for our first date. Again, we both had very busy work schedules so we had to make it convenient for the both of us. Our first date was at a near by restaurant Applebee’s. I met Deric at Applebee’s for dinner and as I approached the parking lot, I saw him get out of his vehicle and I said, WOW, he is indeed very handsome, well dressed and groomed. The dinner and conversation that we shared were awesome. We comfortably talked and shared background information and our views on life. Within a short period of talking to him and being in his presence, and let’s not forget, the long phone conversations, I felt like I had already known him for quite some time. However, there was a moment within the conversation when he really caught my undivided attention; Deric informed me that he was strongly considering moving to Florida / job transfer, etc. The only thing left really for him to do was to act on it by going through the process of making it happen. I said to myself “this is not good—“I sure wouldn’t mine getting to know him but Florida would be such a distance to have a relationship with someone in Alabama…” Again, these were just my inner-thoughts. It was surely something to think about…Although this was our first date, I was already liking him (A LOT)! By the way, he came across the entire time as being such a kind gentlemen.

When we left the restaurant, he followed me home and made sure that I arrived safely. After the first date, my hope was that he was pleased and I hoped to see him again for another date. Soon after, Deric expressed his interest in getting to know me better and the rest is history! Deric Garrett has become my friend and we are so in love with each other. I found my Soul mate and I couldn’t be any happier!!!

What’s your favorite thing to do as a couple?
Deric and I both enjoy spending time with our families so much. But, for our special time together, we enjoy going to dinner and occasionally a movie night. The most enjoyable time is when we are able to get away from every thing and take a long vacation cruising to some of the most beautiful islands. This gives us time to relax and enjoy quality time with each other!

What are you looking forward to most on your wedding day?
Getting all made up and looking amazing in my wedding gown. I look forward to my walk down the aisle and seeing all of our families and friends share with us in our marriage ceremony. Looking into the eyes of my husband, my friend and soul mate as the minister read our vows. I especially, look forward to saying “I DO.”

I am so grateful to have my parents to take part in our wedding, this means so much to me. In honor of Deric’s parents it is very special to know that his Auntie has been there to support us. My daughter will be standing by my side as Maid-of-Honor. It is a joy to know that our kids will be there to witness our union. I am thankful to have all of my 8 siblings (6 sisters & 2 brothers) to share this day with us who are a part of the wedding party. It is so exciting to know that my sister-in-law, brothers-in-laws, family and friends make up the 26 members of our wedding party.

Lastly, I can’t wait to enter into the Reception and see all of the elegant and beautiful designs that have been put in place by the most talented vendors that anyone could ever imagine. I look forward to the father and bride dance and the first dance with the groom. The surprise entertainment, food and the socializing with our special guests that were so thoughtful to take time out of their busy schedules to come out and share in this special occasion with us.

How wedding planning has been going thus far?
At the very beginning of discussing wedding planning with Deric and letting him know some of the details and factors that were involved in planning a wedding, he initially thought that this was something that we should be able to put together ourselves with minimum assistance. Well, at first I thought about it and made an attempt to try to plan our wedding and I quickly realized that I am not gifted enough to pull off the desired beautiful and elegant wedding that I had imagined. So, with all respect to my fiancée’s thoughts about my ability to handle made my best efforts but I had to remind him month after month that “Honey, I tried and I feel like I’m getting no-where with what I would like our wedding day out come to be.”

To make a long story short, as the wedding date of June 25, 2016 was fast approaching, I convinced Deric that we had to get a wedding planner. After not much progress to show, he finally agreed that it was time to get a wedding planner. At first, it was a challenge in finding a wedding coordinator that was approved by the both of us. As we got closer to March of 2016, we realized that there was a contact that was referred to Deric at the very beginning of searching and we finally was able reach her and schedule a consultation. After meeting with Joanna Shephard at ValiaRose Events (wedding coordinator), Deric liked her personality and so did I – so it was a done deal.

After discussing a wedding date and the details around our wedding vision, Joanna (ValiaRose Events) agreed that we had limited time for planning that type of wedding, but she strongly convinced us that she could make it happen. From the very first day, up until this point, Joanna has done a phenomenal job. She is respectful, friendly and professional. She is very engaging and is able to set expectations with the vendors. She has gotten to know the both of us and has learned our likes and dislikes. The ultimate goal is for the bride; to be stress free and she has exceeded our expectations!!! We appreciate her for everything, but mostly for her flexibility and her ability to make our vision come to reality.

Vendors
Photographer: Andre Brown Photography
Wedding Planner: ValiaRose Events