Courtney King, pretty in pink, and Drew Hughes, casual in a blue shirt, were standing before a mausoleum wall at Faith Memorial Cemetery late Saturday afternoon, exchanging their vows.
Holding a wedding at a cemetery would, at first blush, seem almost as outrageous a setting as a 5-year-old's birthday party at Hooters.
"It wasn't to be creative," Courtney said. "We're not creepy people by any means."
They are warmly sentimental people.
They were standing before the tomb of William Edward "Billy" King and his wife, Minnie Jewell King. Billy and Jewell. They were Courtney's grandparents.
"To see young people show that type of respect is a rarity," Grimes said. "If I were going to write this, it would be that good things happen in cemeteries also. God is everywhere."
Courtney, who works in crisis service for a domestic violence shelter, was raised by a single mom. King was essentially the father-figure in her life, "the closest thing I had to having a dad," she said. He was "Papa," pronounced Paw-paw.
King spent 20 years in the Air Force, then worked at Browns Ferry after his retirement.
King seemed to have two great hobbies: building radio-controlled model airplanes and spoiling his family.
"You couldn't get a more stereotypical family man than my grandfather," Courtney said.
On the tomb are these words that illustrate the family's feelings:
"We love you the most."
Jewell died last October. The last 10 years of her life, she was confined to a wheelchair after suffering a stroke. Billy had cared for her the last six years of his life, before he died of cancer in October 2006.
Jewell had a chance to meet Drew when he and Courtney started dating.
"He's cute!" she exclaimed.
After that, there was shared ownership. Said Courtney, "She'd always ask, 'How's our boyfriend?'"
The genesis of the wedding site was from Courtney's mom, Jeannie. When it was mentioned, Drew, a Space Camp counselor, said, "I didn't know what to think. It was an interesting idea to say the least."
It turned out to be a beautiful tribute, an unforgettable, unique event. It was a wedding of tradition - the usual scramble for the bridal bouquet and the garter, a shower of bubbles from well-wishers - in a most untraditional setting.
"The way we kinda thought about it, I know they're all around me spiritually," Courtney said. "If they can't be there physically, why not bring it to them?"
So, in the shadow of a mausoleum, in front of three dozen witnesses, and maybe two unseen others, Courtney King and Drew Hughes were officially pronounced man and wife at 4:05 p.m. on May 21, 2011.
Twenty-five minutes later was the most incongruous of sights: A black Ford SUV pulled from a cemetery, all decorated in pink and white crepe paper, balloons flapping in the breeze, "Just Married" on the rear window.
May 21 will be a nice date to remember. It was a day they already remembered.
Billy King would have been 74 years old on Saturday.
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