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Melody and matrimony

Published:Sunday | January 16, 2011 | 12:00 AM
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From left: Parents of the bride, mother Norma Cooper, father Howard Cooper and his wife Karin, at Karen Cooper and Albert Joey Wolfe Jr's wedding.
Karen Ann cooper and Albert Joselph wolfe Jr exchange wedding vows.
Members of the Southern Chorale who performed at the wedding.
Albert Joseph Wolfe Jr and his bride, Karen Ann Cooper, sealing their wedding in the 'Unity of Sand' ceremony.- Photos by Janet Silvera
David and Brenda Henry.
After exchanging vows, Karen Ann Cooper and Albert Joseph Wolfe Jr take their first walk across the bridge at the Seawind Beach Club, Montego Bay, on Saturday, January 8.
From left: Best man and brother of the groom, Nicholas Wolfe, with newly-weds Joseph Wolfe Jr his bride, Karen Cooper, and her maid of honour and sister, Katherine Cooper.
A proud moment for a proud father, Howard Cooper, as he hugs his daughter Karen.
From left: Howard Coopoer, mother of the bride Norma Cooper, with parents of the groom, Joe an Dianna Wolfe.
A colourful trio from left: Nicola Duncan, daughter Kali and friend Jacki Ellis.
From left: Karin Cooper, Barbara Barrett and Joan McDonald make a beautiful trio.
Patsy and Raymond Mair.
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Janet Silvera, Senior Gleaner Writer

WESTERN BUREAU: How many couples get to have a great American 58-member collegiate choir sing for their wedding?

Your guess is right. Very few!

Well, even the interior of the Seawind Beach Club, under the pressure of the pelting heat, was soothed by the rich melody that rang from the voices of the University of Mississippi Southern Chorale as they sang at Joey Wolfe Jr and Karen Cooper's wedding ceremony in Montego Bay on January 8.

Sounding like the musical interlude that opens a 20th Century Fox movie, the group brightened the skies and made the waves in the ocean stand still as they dedicated one song after the other to the couple during the marriage uniting Wolfe, a doctoral student at the university, and Cooper, a student of divinity.

But this was no theatrical production.

Testimony of greatness

This is a testimony to the goodness and greatness "of our Father, who loves us unconditionally and sacrificially", the couple stated.

Just over 18 months ago, the two, Joey, an American and Karen, of Jamaican descent, scarcely knew each other. "When we met, neither of us was looking for a date, much less a mate, which just proves the adage that love happens when one least expects it," said the couple on reflection.

Officiated by Reverend Terrence Gordon, the Caribbean Sea was the perfect backdrop, a bridge over a swimming pool connected their past to their present status and the freshness of the Seawind Beach Club representing the setting for the lyrics to the song This Marriage.

Sung by the chorale, the words fitting the occasion were: "May this marriage be sweet milk, like wine and halvah (crushed sesame seeds and honey). May this marriage offer fruit and shade like the date palm; May this marriage be full of laughter, our day every day in paradise; May this marriage be a sign of compassion."

It was obvious that Joey Wolfe Jr's strength would be protecting his wife and even more apparent that Karen Wolfe's inner beauty would remain a soul that never fades.

janet.silvera@gleanerjm.com