CRESTVIEW — A Mardi Gras ball set the stage for Dr. Sarah Brooke Syklawer and Christopher Adam's romance.
The bride's mother, Evelyn, said a mutual friend introduced them to each other in February of 2012 at such an occasion in Mobile, Ala.
Their love quickly blossomed.
"They got engaged May 31, 2013," after Sarah's dental school graduation, Evelyn said. "He got down on one knee and proposed to her … it was a surprise for her because she thought we were just going to dinner to celebrate her graduation from UAB dental school in Birmingham.
"Both families were there. It was the first time that some of them had met each other."
Syklawer and Howle exchanged vows on a Caribbean island, marrying at sunset on Aug. 11, 2015, at Couples Tower Isle Resort in Ochos Rios, Jamaica.
The couple's parents are Dr. and Mrs. Ricardo Syklawer of Dothan, and Mr. and Mrs. David E. Howle Sr. of Mobile. The bride's grandparents are Mrs. Edith Hilburn and the late Mr. Howard Hilburn of Crestview.
Sarah's father gave her in marriage.
Her sisters — Dr. Erica Syklawer Kumar, of Tulsa, Okla., and Dr. Allison Syklawer Tutwiler, of Montgomery, Ala. — were her matrons of honor.
Mr. David Eric Howle Jr., of Birmingham, was the best man and Mr. Hunter Malec, of Mobile, was a groomsman.
The bride’s parents hosted the wedding and a cocktail reception on the resort’s private island. Then the wedding party and guests returned to the resort for dining and dancing.
The rehearsal dinner was a beach barbecue party with a cocktail reception, dancing and entertainment.
The couple now reside in Ann Arbor, Mich., while Sarah completes her orthodontics residency at the University of Michigan.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Jamaican wedding solidifies couple's bond