Beach wedding's a dream come true for Sahai . . .
Ysahai Honor-Marie Robinson, of Southampton Parish, always dreamed of having a beach-side wedding. And when her dream came true last week it was in storybook-like fashion at high noon on the Ocean View Beach of the Fairmont Southampton.
Ysahai, popularly known as Sahai, is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair Robinson. Sinclair, who is assistant maitre d' in the banquet department of Fairmont, and his colleagues went all out to ensure that the wedding was one of the most fabulous ever there
As her name bespeaks, Sahai was an honours student from day one at Heron Bay Primary School, Saltus Grammar School and Bermuda Institute. From there, she went to Atlantic Union College in Massachusetts and then to Andrews University in Michigan.
It was at Andrews that she met her future husband, Wendel O.A. Martin II. They graduated together, she with a bachelor' degree in Speech Language, Pathology and Audiology; and he with a bachelor's in Business Marketing. Sahai went on to gain her master's at Eastern Michigan University (EMU).
Wendel is the youngest of the three children of Mr. and Mrs. Dr. Wendel Martin, Sr. Dr. Martin is a lecturer at EMU and a school principal in Detroit.
What made Ysahai's wedding more fabulous was the fact that she and a party of more than 30 family and friends joined her and Wendel aboard the liner Norwegian Dawn on a cruise to Bermuda for the nuptials. Hours after arriving in St. George's, they were entertained at a get-acquainted dinner party at the Robinsons' home. The next day they joined a host of Bermudian family and friends for the big event.
The first thing the vast majority did on arriving at the beach was to follow the entire wedding party in taking off their shoes and getting that soft pink sand between their toes. Some confessed that they had a major problem resisting the urge to wade into the beautiful blue water.
Sahai opted for a 'squared' sea shell motif for the wedding, ranging from a striking, improvised altar in the sand to the tables decorated with square plates and vases filled with hibiscus flowers in pink sand.
Amplified organ music, attracting the attention of tourists and invited guests alike, heralded the arrival of the groom and his attendants, followed by the grand entrance of the bridesmaids and Sahai herself, on the arm of her father.
Pastor Kenneth Manders, of the Hamilton Seventh Day Adventist Church, who has a special connection to the bride's family, solemnised the ceremony with an opening prayer and pastoral message leading up to the exchange of vows and signing of the marriage licence while doves released by Mr. and Mrs. Sterling Smith hovered around the setting.
Next was the buffet with guests feasting from strategically placed 'stations', including pasta, Asian food, salad and fruit stations and, of course, a carving station. Wedding cake and sorbet topped off everything in preparation for the traditional toasts. No alcohol was served.
Sahai and her husband took a leisurely horse and buggy drive from the beach along South Shore, while the overseas guests spent the next hours sightseeing and shopping in preparation for their cruise back to Detroit the next day. The newlyweds are making their home in Detroit.