Jermaine and Tova’s love story is like none other. The two were introduced to each other through Jermaine’s godparents. In fact, Jermaine’s godmother approached Tova before a church service. Tova was caught off guard, because she thought they were going to chat about sorority matters. To her surprise, Jermaine’s godmother wanted to tell her about him. Knowing how this story would possibly end, Tova politely agreed to check out his “socials” but waited before actually checking them out (she didn’t want to get her hopes up too high). After finally taking a look at Jermaine’s Facebook and Instagram profiles, she was certainly impressed by his looks. But she wanted to know more about his character. Not just anyone would suffice for her (even if good looking)! After learning more about Jermaine including that he was also previously engaged and felt God called him to pursue another potential spouse, she wanted to learn even more about him. The two got connected via phone. Rather than sending a bunch of texts, they FaceTimed each other per Tova’s request (she wanted to see how serious Jermaine was). During their first conversation, Jermaine was intrigued to know more about Tova and asked her on a date. On September 24, 2023, the two met at Sitti downtown for their first date. Not too many dates afterwards, the two received confirmation that God was calling them to be husband and wife.

Jermaine popped the big question New Year’s Eve 2023 at Bonnie & Clyde’s Lounge in Charlotte, NC. Indeed, right before he got on one knee he asked Tova to remember what she said one night when they were at a bar--that she would marry him if he proposed to her then. Since it was loud in the restaurant, Tova didn’t hear Jermaine say he was going to test that theory that night, and to Tova’s surprise, when she thought it was time for them to leave, the next thing she knew Jermaine was on one knee asking to marry her. Tova was genuinely surprised and felt like time stopped and all eyes were on her. Her response to Jermaine: “A thousand times yes!”

Tova is Jacksonville, NC native. Currently she is a professor at NC State. In her free time, she likes to do outdoor biking, Zumba, and watch Netflix.

Jermaine is a Greenville, NC native. He is in law enforcement. In his free time, he likes to workout and watch basketball. He can cook a mean salmon and likes to grill.

Together, Tova and Jermaine like to try new foods, drink wine, watch movies, and do outdoor walking.