BY JE’DON HOLLOWAY-TALLEY | Special to the Birmingham Times
DEBORAH AND BRANDON ROBINSON
Live: Pinson
Married: Sept. 23, 2023
Met: March 2021, at Viking’s Motorcycle Club in Birmingham. Brandon’s brother, Micheal Williams, and Deborah’s twin brother, Derrick Douglas, are members and had been Deborah manning the grill for the club’s cookout.
“I met her smelling like BBQ smoke,” Brandon laughed, “as soon as I saw Deborah, I knew she was going to be the one. My brother, Michael introduced us, [which was notable] because out of all the women there, she was the only one he pointed out. I started trying to talk to her and told her she was looking good and asked her for her number, but at first, she was acting like she didn’t want to give it to me…”
As the night went on, an opportunity was presented, Brandon said. “Deborah had to go pick up her mama and I asked her if I could take her to get her so we could ride around and get to know each other,” he said.
“… he acted like a real gentleman, he didn’t approach me like any other man, and he had a lot of respect about himself,” said Deborah. “My mama fell in love with him when she first saw him, she immediately started saying ‘That’s my son-in-law’.”
Brandon called Deborah the next morning and asked if she liked to fish. They spent the day fishing at Lake Purdy located off Highway 280, and “from that day forward, we spent every day together,” Brandon said. “I would even take my lunch breaks (from Alabama Power) to go see her.”
First date: The following weekend, at Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen, on Highway 280. Brandon didn’t have much to say about the dinner, other than “I fell in love …at that dinner, a week later, I was already in love,” he said.
Deborah said their chemistry was electric, and that she was drawn to Brandon because “he was on his grown-man status, it wasn’t like dating a little boy. He treated me like I always wanted to be treated … opened all the doors, he pulled my chair out, and he was just the ultimate gentleman. And after that, there wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t see him.”
The turn: Late April 2021. Brandon revealed that he was “kinda in the middle of a relationship [with someone else] when I met Deborah, something about [Deborah] was pulling me,” he said. “[She] was spoiling me, showing me all types of love, I had never felt before and I fell in love with her.”
Deborah invited Brandon to her home in Ensley for a slumber party one weekend in April 2021. “I came over that weekend and never went back home,” Brandon laughed. “I’m just being real,” He ended the other relationship he was in and dove into his with Deborah.
Deborah admitted that that weekend sealed the deal. “We fell in love that weekend and said, ‘I love you for the first time,’ and [established] that we were together now. And like he said, he never went back home — he was home,” she said.
The proposal: At midnight, on July 31, 2022, at their apartment in Fairfield. The couple lay awake in bed to usher in Deborah’s 45th birthday.
“…and when it hit 12 o’clock, I told her ‘Happy Birthday’ and she started asking me about her gift and I gave her the box with her ring in it,” Brandon said. “She opened it and just started crying and I said, ‘Do you want to spend the rest of your life with me?’ and she said, ‘Yes’.”
“I started crying like a baby because it wasn’t no little bitty diamond, he did his homework before he bought that ring,” Deborah said. “And after that, we called our parents and told them and they were so happy for us … and when we woke up the next morning we went to breakfast and went to see our family to show off the ring, and that night we celebrated at The Vikings Motorcycle Club, and my birthday party turned into an engagement party.”
The wedding: At Remy’s Event Center in Center Point, officiated by Deborah’s cousin, Rev. Willie Robinson. Their colors were rose gold, black, and white.
Most memorable for the bride was seeing her groom in his tuxedo, “and the smile on his face when he saw me,” Deborah said, “and after I saw that, I just cried and cried and cried. I was so happy and excited, there were so many emotions going on.”
Most memorable for the groom was finally seeing his bride in her wedding dress, after a hectic morning and a late start to their wedding ceremony. “That made it real and I was thinking I finally found my best friend, partner, and ride-or-die chick,” Brandon said. “Oh, and we did everything ourselves [with the help of some family and friends]: the decorating, the food, I went and got my car washed and watched some of the Alabama football game, so I was an hour late, and she was too because she was still getting her hair and makeup done.”
The couple said their wedding was a very long day, but was all worth it. Especially once they got to the reception [at Remy’s Event Center in Center Point] which was “lit”. “We partied the night away and our family and friends stayed behind and helped us clean up,” Deborah said.
They honeymooned in Gatlinburg, Tenn., and stayed in the cabins for six days. “That was Deborah’s first time there and she didn’t want to go home, so I kept extending our stay,” Brandon said.
Words of wisdom: “Keep family out of your business, always talk about any problems that you have. Keep God first, don’t go to bed mad, and always make time for date night,” Deborah said.
Brandon said, “take it one day at a time, and be around people who have positive energy. Try to be around more married couples than single people and try to stay off social media because it ruins couples and causes problems in the relationship.”
As the interview came to a close, the couple was en route to their weekly date night and Brandon provided this advice: “Fella’s, y’all plan the date nights, ladies love it when you tell them ‘put some clothes on, let’s go.’ Don’t tell them where you’re going, tell them you’ll find out when we get there.”
Happily ever after: The Robinsons attend Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church in Bessemer, and are a blended family with five children: Jhamari, 20, Janahya, 19, Kaimana, 16, Jayden, 15, and Jazelle, 14.
Deborah, 46, is a Bessemer native, and Wenonah High School grad. She owns a Birmingham-based business named Serinety’s Kitchen and Decor, where she does party planning and catering.
Brandon, 40, is a Powderly native, a Huffman High School grad, and works in the Alabama Power warehouse.
“You Had Me at Hello’’ highlights married couples and the love that binds them. If you would like to be considered for a future “Hello’’ column, or know someone, please send nominations to Barnett Wright bwright@birminghamtimes.com. Include the couple’s name, contact number(s) and what makes their love story unique.
