Relax, Unwind & Grab a Drink With Us by the Pool

Eclipse Night Club and Lounge

The Future Jackson's Welcome Reception

Main Buffet 

Ladies Love Brunch

Resort Fitness Center

The Jackson Workout

Basketball Courts

Love & Basketball- Jackson Style

The Fountain 

Wedding Day

Wedding

Poolside Reception

Reception

Meet in the Resort Lobby

Speedboat & Snorkeling Excursion

Main Pool

Foam Party

ORO Nightclub

Oro Nightclub at The Hard Rock Hotel

Now Garden Spa

Spa Day

Our Wedding

The story is that Monique tried to kill Ghiles on the first date. No, it's not what you think…The couple actually share a birthday..well, almost. Their birthdays are 2 days apart in March.For their first date, they went to dinner at a Brazilian restaurant in the city. Monique, a lover of all things seafood, ordered a shrimp dish. Ghiles, allergic to all things seafood, ordered salmon. After ordering drinks, the meals were brought to the table and they smelled delicious. After digging in, Monique was in deep conversation while Ghiles was intently listening. Ghiles began to have a slight cough and kept clearing his throat. Then there was noticeable sweat on Ghiles forehead. It took only a few seconds after that for them both to realize that Ghiles was having an allergic reaction. The chef had cooked Ghiles' salmon in the sauce from Monique's seafood dinner. In an effort to try and save the day, Monique proceeded to dump out the contents of her purse on the table in search of a Benedryl pill, she knew was somewhere in that bag. After finding the Benedryl, Monique came up with the genius idea for Ghiles to wash it down with a shot of vodka…because " alcohol kills everything- it will help", she said. And there you have it, according to Ghiles, Monique tried to kill him on their first date. Thinking back on it, Monique still laughs likening the moment to a scene from the movie Hitch.

The First Date

Ghiles and I met at Thomas Jefferson High School in East New York…He was a Dean of the school. I was a Psychologist contracted by an outside company to work in the school. The first year we both worked there was pretty uneventful, in my mind at least. He was the popular guy at work, clearly into fashion, and often the "talk around town" kind of charmer that many of my female colleagues chatted about. That clearly was not my type, so I didn't give him much thought.It wasn't until after the first year working at Jeff, that I began to see beyond the flashy clothes and collegiate athlete swag. I began to notice his love for the kids we worked by the effortless way he guided and mentored our young men without even realizing it. I started noticing that he was often the first to show up to work and welcome kids in the building and the last to leave at night after coaching the girls basketball team, making sure they all got home safely. His corny jokes and failed attempts at catching my attention by saying something "less than funny", suddenly started to peak my attention and made me genuinely smile. Well maybe not smile, but he at least started to get a smirk out of me. I found out that he was a Pisces and in true Pisces fashion, loved the water and traveling anywhere and everywhere in the Caribbean.During our second year of working together, we became friends. I think I knew he was interested in being more than just a friend, but I had a rule. I didn't date anyone I worked with .. because well, it could just get messy. And I don't do messy. So I blew the idea off. Little did I know, he was just patiently waiting. In November 2012, I got a promotion which took me out of Jeff and onto 34th Street in Manhattan. And that was his in, his "lay-up" to try and take our friendship to the next step.When I was getting ready to start working in the city and would no longer be at Jeff, he asked me to join him at his gym one night to work out together…and our relationship has been working out ever since….

About The Groom

Monique, MoMo, or Squashy, as I know her, was born and raised in Queens.Mo and I met at Thomas Jefferson High School in my hometown of East New York. Mo was a Psychologist at the school and I was a Dean for one of the school's on the campus. If my memory serves me correctly, the first time Mo caught my eye was at an after work gathering. She was so beautiful, but I thought she was out of my league. Her confidence, sweet voice, beautiful eyes, big hair and amazing personality was very attractive to me. I found myself on the third floor of the school on a daily basis just to get a glimpse of her or to say "hi". While visiting her office on the third floor, I got to know her better and we became friends. Some people may say I became her guinea pig for her practice as she often gave me advice to get through certain situations. Mo's passion for helping the children in East New York sparked a different type of love within me as I began to desire a "more than friends" type of relationship. However, Mo played hard to get and was often heard saying to other people "I don't date people at my job". But deep down, I knew she liked me.With the help of amazing friends, we would set up gym time after work so that way, I could be closer to her and show her that I was more than just the flashy guy from East New York that she thought I was. During those times in the gym, Mo and I got closer and I learned that Mo was more than just a sophisticated pretty girl , she was goofy, funny, had a really nice physique and she was really, really clumsy. I knew that was the perfect time for me to make my move, so I invited her to a private session at my gym. From that day forward we have been inseparable.Squashy became my best friend. It was hard keeping it a secret while at work because my colleagues noticed something different about me. I was so happy and proud that she was all mine. I couldn't hide my smile. I knew from the beginning that she was the one, she was the one I was going to marry. A real woman, always about her business, kind-hearted, with a "put everyone first" attitude and a love for children that completely melted my heart. I wanted to be the person that put HER first. As Mo and my relationship blossomed, I learned that we had so much in common. We were both Pisces, had a love for traveling, and had grown up in single parent homes. We found what we were missing in each other. My craziness and her calm, cool demeanor made us the perfect match. That's my Squashy.

About The Bride

She Said YES!!

The Proposal

We had just moved into our new home 2 weeks ago. The house was still full of boxes and there was so much to do. But Ghiles made Monique promise that she would get out of her sweats and go out with him for date night on Saturday, 5/28/16 to celebrate the blessing of becoming homeowners. When looking for something to wear after unpacking the last box for the day, Monique began to stress because she couldn't find the box with the outfit she wanted to wear. Then she remembered that Ghiles had randomly bought her an outfit a few days earlier so she looked for it to try it on. Luckily it fit perfectly, so the crisis was averted.Ghiles drove from Baldwin to the city telling Monique that the plan was to go for some drinks and then to a restaurant on Restaurant Row. While in the car, Monique noticed that Ghiles was sweating profusely and commented that it was 80 degrees out and she didn't understand why he had a sweater on. Ghiles commented that he had a t-shirt in the back of the car to change into if he got hot. Clearly he was already hot, but she decided to leave the subject alone!Once parked, they walked a few blocks and entered a restaurant. All the while, Monique was commenting on how familiar the block looked saying "haven't we been here?". Ghiles brushed off the idea and led Monique into the restaurant. Once inside, Monique felt deja vu even more and stated "we've been to this restaurant before". Ghiles ignored her and went to ask for a table. As soon as the couple was seated, Monique felt even more nostalgic once she realized that they HAD been there before, for their first date. She knew for a fact because they were seated at the exact same table in front of a fireplace. She had to make her point and tried her best to get Ghiles to realize that she wasn't crazy and this was in fact where they had their first date years ago. Ghiles looked around, shrugged and said "yea, maybe" and proceeded to order a few drinks. While waiting for the drinks, Ghiles got up saying he was hot (Monique was right!!) and he was going to the bathroom to change from his sweater into the t-shirt he grabbed from the back of the car. He came back to the table and sat immediately next to Monique, instead of across from her, as he had been sitting before getting up. Monique paid it no mind, he does stuff like that often. She did pay mind to the strange waiter that was lingering near the table staring at her. Her senses heightened as she kicked Ghiles under the table to get him to notice that the waiter was now randomly recording her on his cell phone. When Monique broke the glaring eye contact with the waiter to look at Ghiles to better understand why he wasn't paying attention to what was going on....IT HAPPENED! Ghiles was talking to her. It first sounded like gibberish. It was happening so fast. Then she heard the words "It's Memorial Day Weekend" You are the best memory I have and want to have for the rest of my life. I love you with all I am." Then he got on one knee and pulled out the most beautiful ring she had ever seen and asked "Will you marry me?". The restaurant erupted in applause and after an initial moment of shock- it was all so real and all so perfect and.....SHE SAID YES!!! Note: Do you see the words "Will You Marry Me?" on his t-shirt? Do you? Because Monique did not...until hours later..lolImmediately after placing the ring on her finger, Ghiles whisked Monique away to their next destination of the evening. Monique wanted to slow things down, call her mom to share the news an revel in the moment. But Ghiles was in a rush. They seemed to float down the few NYC blocks to the next location which was the W Hotel. Monique looked at the building and said " We have a mortgage now, we can't afford a $400 hotel room tonight". Ghiles stopped, looked Monique in the eyes and asked her if she trusted him. She stopped talking immediately and followed his lead. The elevator stopped at the 11th floor and they walked off the elevator to music and a crowd of applause. Monique was floored. In front of her was 40 of their closest friends patiently waiting to celebrate this amazing moment with them. It was an immediate Engagement Party!!!And she could not have planned it better, even if she had done it herself!

Our Story

Details

Sister. Friend. Auntie. Godmother. Social Worker. Eastern Star. Cigar Enthusiast. Designer Sneakerhead. Giver of everything she's got if you need it..and more.

Amanda Bernardine

Brother. Friend. Basketball Coach. Pro-Basketball Player. Jameson Drinker. World Traveler. Curt The Flirt aka 'Smooth". Hard Worker. Brutally Honest. Best Advice Giver..Determined, Never Gives Up...

Curt Sumpter

Little Brother. Father. Friend. Urban Fashion Enthusiast.  Sneakerhead. East New York Celebrity. "Bones" aka "Zito"...It's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get up...

Jarvis Jackson

Sister. Cousin. Friend. Jokester. Travel Enthusiast. Track Coach. Brooklyn Girl...Will make anything happen for her loved ones..

Missy Williams

Father. Brother. Friend. Pro Body Builder. Snack Lover.Food Enthusiast. Social Networker...Brother from another mother..

Ephfram Lawhorne

Sister. Friend. Godmommy. Social Worker.  Travel Enthusiast. Culture Lover. Curly Girl. Double Dutch Coach....She lives to love and loves to live...

Jovana De Leon

Cam's Dad. Friend. Fitness Trainer. Hard Worker. Tattoo Enthusiast. Steak Lover. Cognac Drinker.Baseball Pitcher.. Striving to be the man that Cam looks up to..

Brandon Redd

Wife. Mother of Two. Auntie. Sister. Friend. . Entrepreneur. Speech Pathologist.  Philanthropist. Number One Supporter. Superwoman... Finds a way to do it all and still look fly...

Aisha Demosthenes

Wedding Party

Photos

Registry

Q + A

We have been working with DestinationWeddings.com on our wedding and travel plans and have reserved rooms for our guests at a special group rate starting as low as $350 per person for an all-inclusive 4 day/ 3 night stay! To confirm your room and travel needs:1.Please sign into our Wedding Website from the <a href="http://www.destinationweddings.com/Weddings/Guests/AttendaWedding.aspx?dw_weddingcode=THEFUTUREJACKSONS&amp;dw_bname=Howell" target="_blank">Attend a Wedding</a> page on DestinationWeddings.com2.Enter Passcode: THEFUTUREJACKSONS3.Review, select and pay for your room accommodations OR4.Contact our Certified Destination Wedding Specialist, Christine Kennedy, at 800-498-8130 or <a href="mailto:ckennedy@destinationweddings.com?subject=RE:%20Howell%20Wedding">ckennedy@destinationweddings.com</a> for assistance through the booking process.We look forward to seeing you there! Monique &amp; Ghiles

Let DestinationWeddings.com do the work for you!

Check back soon for details on group rates for travel.Ground transportation to and from the airport is INCLUDED in the all-inclusive packages at the resort.

Monique & Ghiles

Monique & Ghiles