Elizabeth Smith, Chris Johnson marry

Elizabeth Janae’ Smith and Christopher A. Johnson, both of Orangeburg, were united in marriage May 6 at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center in Columbia. The Rev. Jerome Anderson officiated the 5 o’clock ceremony.

The bride is the daughter of Ms. Sheila Wilson-Smith of Silver Spring, Maryland and retired Sgt. 1st Class Anthony J. Smith of Concord, North Carolina. She is the granddaughter of Mrs. Elizabeth H. Wilson and Mr. William H. Wilson, both of Orangeburg. A graduate of Springbrook High School in Silver Spring, she attended South Carolina State University in Orangeburg, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in child development in 2012 and a master’s degree in counselor education K-12 in 2015. She is employed with Orangeburg Consolidated School District 4 as an elementary school guidance counselor.

The groom is the son of Ms. Charlayne Jones of Columbia. He is the grandson of the late Mr. and Mrs. Leroy (Vivian) Jones of Columbia. A 2001 graduate of Spring Valley High School, he earned a bachelor’s degree from South Carolina State University in business administration. He is employed as a small business owner.

The bride was escorted by her father and given in marriage by her parents. Soloist Mrs. Deidre Stubbs of Rockville, Maryland, and musician Mr. Joshua Steele of Charlotte, North Carolina, provided music.

Maids of honor were Jasmine Walker of Columbia and Latoya Felder of Orangeburg. Matrons of honor were Brittany Battle of Charlotte and the bride’s cousin Shadaha G. Whitaker of Augusta, Georgia. Bridesmaids were Simona Falana of West Palm Beach, Florida; Ashley Nelson of Philadelphia; and Tierra Matthews of New Orleans. The couple’s daughter, Kennedy Johnson of Orangeburg; Serenity Pye of Columbia; and Daijah Whitaker of Augusta were flower girls. Junior bridesmaids were Aubrai Brailey of Orangeburg; Victoria Hinton of Upper Marlboro, Maryland; and Carrenton Wright of Columbia.

Best man was Sgt. Nicholas Jones of Killeen, Texas. Groomsman was Cecil Vaughn of Columbia. The couple’s godson, Tyler Battle of Charlotte, was ring bearer. Junior groomsmen were the bride’s cousin Demarquez Campbell of Augusta and Jonathan Hinton of Upper Marlboro. Ushers were Joshua Battle of Charlotte; Justin Bouknight and the groom’s cousin Titus Jones, both of Columbia; the bride’s cousin Michael McCants of Conway; and Kobe Sanders of Concord.

A reception followed at the convention center. Hostesses were Jamauri Darby and Jordan Walker, both of Columbia, and the bride’s cousin Kristen Dunlap of Richmond, Virginia.

After their honeymoon in Turks and Caicos, the couple will reside in Orangeburg.

In their own words

Q: How did you meet?

A: Met at South Carolina State University.

Q: When did you know your spouse was “the one”?

A: When he brought over the entire canned soup section of the grocery store when I was sick with the flu.

Q: Tell us about the proposal.

A: He surprised me at our daughter’s first birthday party in front of all my family and friends.

Q: What was your favorite part of the wedding day?

A: My favorite part was walking down the aisle in front of about 250 guests to meet my husband-to-be.

Q: How did you choose the venue where you were married?

A: After visiting many venues between Charleston and Columbia that would offer a one-stop shop for our guests, the Columbia Convention Center was the perfect venue to accommodate all our family and friends in one central space.

Q: What was the significance of the music played during your ceremony?

A: All the music played represented our journey to this day and were symbolic of how we feel about each other.

Q: Did you have something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue? What were they?

A: Yes. My something old was my tennis bracelet Chris gave to me for Mother’s Day of 2016. My something new were my decoy earrings from my mother for the ceremony. My something borrowed was a bracelet from my aunt and a bracelet representing my deceased aunt that was incorporated into my bridal bouquet. My something blue was a beautiful blue Tiffany box from my mother that had my “actual” ceremony earrings she surprised me with as an heirloom to be passed down to our daughter.

This story was originally published June 11, 2017 at 12:01 AM with the headline "Elizabeth Smith, Chris Johnson marry."