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‘We Got Married on 8/18/18 and We’re Still on our Honeymoon Today’

BY JE’DON HOLLOWAY-TALLEY Special to the Birmingham Times “You Had Me at Hello’’ highlights married couples and the love that binds them. If you would like to be considered for a future “Hello’’ column, or know someone, please send nominations to Barnett Wright bwright@birminghamtimes.com. Include the couple’s name, contact number(s) and what makes their love […]
The post ‘We Got Married on 8/18/18 and We’re Still on our Honeymoon Today’ first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

Published

2 years ago

December 5, 2023

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BY JE’DON HOLLOWAY-TALLEY

Special to the Birmingham Times

“You Had Me at Hello’’ highlights married couples and the love that binds them. If you would like to be considered for a future “Hello’’ column, or know someone, please send nominations to Barnett Wright bwright@birminghamtimes.com. Include the couple’s name, contact number(s) and what makes their love story unique.

NATASHA AND GREGORY GLASTER

Live: Pleasant Grove

Married: Aug. 18, 2018

Met: Fall 2005, at Greater Mount Carmel Missionary Baptist Church in West End. Natasha was a member when Gregory was sent to be interim pastor. Soon after, he was appointed to full pastorship, but they did not make a personal connection until more than a decade later, in 2017.

“I was over the youth ministry and the praise team so we communicated about those [matters], but one Sunday he preached a message on relationships and … and it just progressed from there,” Natasha said.

“On first Sundays, we would go out and visit and give communion to the sick, and she came and knocked on my office door and asked me had I eaten anything and I said ‘no’ and didn’t think any more of it. But less than 30 minutes later she came back with a sandwich she and bought me some lunch and that got my attention,” Gregory remembered.

The chairman of his deacon board would be in the office when Natasha would come by, and Gregory pointed out “that woman right there would make a great wife to somebody … I didn’t even know that I was speaking it on myself,” he said.

First date: July 6, 2017, at Logan’s Roadhouse in McCalla. “God had changed my heart to have feelings for him right before we started to date and I kept running from the feelings because I said I could not like or date my pastor,” Natasha said. “I was schoolgirl nervous, but it was a good date, he was great company.”

“Looking from a pastor’s view I was cautious because I was in a pastoral role but I had feelings for this young lady, and I didn’t want to offend her or stain my calling,” Gregory said, “but she was company that was needed, I could take off all my hats and finally be human.”

The turn: By September 2017 the two were a pair. “It didn’t take long because both of us were praying for spouses, so we went into the next two dates expressing that to each other. We knew we didn’t want to play, and be going out on dates just to be girlfriend and boyfriend… We wanted to get to know one another to see where it could go seriously. I can’t pinpoint the date, but it was very shortly after that we became exclusive,” Natasha said.

“Each time we were in each other’s presence it was something that we knew. We both had been searching for something for so long, and it’s hard to put into words but you just know when you’ve found it,” Gregory said. “That void that had been empty for so long was finally filled.”

“When we decided, we were going to date seriously, I called her up [to the front of the church] and held her hand and made an announcement to the congregation that we were seeing each other because I didn’t want any [whispering],” Gregory said.

The proposal: Eight days before Christmas 2017, at their church, Greater Mount Carmel Missionary Baptist Church in West End after Sunday service.

“I did it before the congregation. After the sermon, I asked can we have as many people as possible stay behind because we have some business at hand and I won’t keep you long. I had already asked her mother [who is also a member of their church] if I had her blessing in marriage when [Natasha and I] started to date seriously…

“And I had the youth [department] escort Natasha up to the front, it was about 12-15 of our youth, and she didn’t know why she was being called to the front I got on my knees and asked her to be my wife. The church was elated, she was crying all over the place, I don’t know who was crying more, her or her mama. Natasha was reared in that church, she came through the ranks and played a role in so many of the youth’s lives…she’s always wanted a family of her own and now it was coming to pass and everybody was elated to see it come to pass in God’s house,” Gregory said.

“My best friend doesn’t go to our church, and he invited her, and right before he got on one knee he asked for the doors of the church to be opened and she walked in and when I saw her I knew something was up,” Natasha said. “And when he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him, I put my hand over my mouth and gasped and said ‘yes’. And when people started coming up to hug me I started remembering my prayers to God and realized that God didn’t forget about me, I was 39 and had been praying for a husband. …I asked God to bless me with somebody who could pray over me and for me, and I specifically asked for it to be somebody at my church because I love my church family and I didn’t want to have to leave and go to another church… It became so overwhelming that I just couldn’t stop crying.”

Proposing eight days before Christmas and deciding to get married on Aug. 18, 2018, was no coincidence. “Eight is the number of new beginnings and the Lord told me it was time for a new beginning,” he said.

The wedding: At their church, Greater Mount Carmel Missionary Baptist Church in West End, officiated by Bishop Raymond Whitsey [Gregory’s pastor]. Their colors were red, black, and silver and their reception followed at the Marriott Hotel Ballroom on U.S. 280.

Most memorable for the bride was internal reflection. “I didn’t want the day to end, I loved every minute of it. When I came down the aisle my eyes went on Gregory and I just remembered ‘he [God] didn’t forget about you, and he didn’t forget about him [Gregory] either… And there was a part when they had the other First Ladies come and pray over me and the spirit got so high, I thought I was going to pass out, but they ended the prayer just in time,” Natasha laughed.

Most memorable for the groom was laying eyes on his bride. “When they opened the doors and I saw her, I knew I had finally gotten it right. I have messed up so many times in my life, that when I saw her, I said ‘Lord, if I don’t get nothing else in this life right, I know I got this right, Lord, I thank you’. It was like the final piece of my life was about to come together. She was what I had been missing in my life, and I finally had enough sense to let God do it, and it was finally done right…,” Gregory said.

They honeymooned in Gatlinburg, Tennessee at the cabins.

“We got upgraded when we got there and were put in a [newly renovated] cabin at the top of the mountain, and we’re still on our honeymoon today,” Gregory said.

Words of wisdom: “Never think that God has given up on you, what you’ve been praying for [is coming]. Keep God first, communicate with one another, and stay friends,” Natasha said.

“The bottom line is this– it’s one thing to love somebody, but you better make sure you’re in love, because if you’re in love, regardless of what comes up you can overcome it. There’s a difference between loving someone and being in love; I’m in love with Natasha,” Gregory said.

Happily ever after: The Glasters are a blended family with six children and their youngest, Isaac, 3 1/2, born of their union.

Natasha, 45, is a West End native, and West End High School grad. She attended the University of Alabama, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in biology; Grand Canyon University [online], where she received a master’s degree in education; and Walden University [online], where she obtained an Ed.S. in education. Natasha teaches 7th grade science at Hueytown Middle School.

Gregory, 64, is a Roosevelt City native, and Shades Valley High School grad. He attended the now-closed Southern Junior College of Business in Birmingham where he majored in business administration and played on the basketball team. Gregory pastors Greater Mount Carmel Missionary Baptist Church in West End and is Chaplain of Pleasant Grove High School’s varsity football team.

Birmingham Personal Injury Attorneys | Guster Law Firm, LLC

This article originally appeared in The Birmingham Times.

The post ‘We Got Married on 8/18/18 and We’re Still on our Honeymoon Today’ first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

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Poll Shows Support for Policies That Help Families Afford Child Care

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — New national polling shows persistent voter concern about the affordability and availability of child care for working parents, alongside broad support across key demographic groups for federal child care policies that help families afford care.

Published

1 day ago

March 2, 2026

Oakland Post

By First Five Years Fund

New national polling shows persistent voter concern about the affordability and availability of child care for working parents, alongside broad support across key demographic groups for federal child care policies that help families afford care.

The national survey was conducted by UpOne Insight on behalf of the First Five Years Fund from January 13–18, 2026.

Key findings include:

• Parents need help: 80% of voters say the ability of working parents to find and afford child care is either in a state of crisis or a major problem.

• This is an affordability issue: 82% believe federal child care funding will help lower costs for working families — including 69% of Republicans, 84% of Independents, and 94% of Democrats.

• And there continues to be strong support (62%) for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), a federal program that makes it possible for hundreds of thousands of families to afford safe, quality care for their children while parents work or go to school, including a majority of Republicans, 63% of Independents and 72% of Democrats.

• Support for funding child care programs remains strong: 75% believe child care funding should be increased or kept at current levels — including 75% of Republicans, 85% of Independents, and 97% of Democrats.

• 74% say funding for child care is an important and good use of tax dollars, including a majority of Republicans, three-quarters of Independents, and nine in ten Democrats.

FFYF Executive Director Sarah Rittling said, “Voters across the country are sending a clear message: federal child care and early learning programs work. These investments help parents stay in the workforce, strengthen families, and support healthy child development. They have also long had strong bipartisan support in Congress. At a time when affordability is top of mind for families, continued federal funding is essential to ensure child care remains accessible and within reach.”

First Five Years Fund works to protect, prioritize, and build bipartisan support for quality child care and early learning programs at the federal level. Reliable, affordable, and high-quality early learning and child care can be transformative, not only enhancing a child’s prospects for a brighter future but also bolstering working parents and fostering economic stability nationwide.

We work with Congress and the Administration to identify federal solutions that work for families with young children, as well as states and communities. We work with policymakers to identify ways to increase access to affordable, high-quality child care and early learning programs for children. And we collaborate with advocacy groups to help align best practices with the best possible policies. http://www.ffyf.org

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Trump’s MAGA Allies are Creating Executive Order Plan to Steal the 2026 Midterms

NNPA NEWSWIRE — The document that could lead to an executive order proposes using the claim that China interfered with the 2020 elections as grounds to “declare a national emergency.” The move would be an unprecedented step that would grant Trump new authority over the voting systems in the U.S.

Published

4 days ago

February 27, 2026

Oakland Post

By Lauren Victoria Burke, NNPA Newswire Correspondent

A group of MAGA pro-Trump activists, who say they are working in coordination with the White House, are circulating a 17-page draft executive order that would claim without evidence that China interfered with the 2020 presidential election. Donald Trump lost the 2020 presidential to President Joe Biden by over 7 million votes. Since Trump lost to Biden in 2020, he has repeatedly claimed that the election was “stolen” without evidence. The report of a group of “Trump allies” preparing an executive order to give Trump power over elections was first reported by The Washington Post.

The lies around the right-wing campaign that pushed falsehoods that the 2020 election was stolen was trafficked through right-wing media, particularly Fox News. Fox News was then sued for defamation for the claims by Dominion Voting Systems. Fox lost the case and had to settle for the largest defamation amount on record of $787.5 million in April 2023.

The document that could lead to an executive order proposes using the claim that China interfered with the 2020 elections as grounds to “declare a national emergency.” The move would be an unprecedented step that would grant Trump new authority over the voting systems in the U.S.

The story in The Washington Post arrives as Trump increasingly signals that he may take actions that would alter the result of the 2026 midterms. The Republicans are widely expected to lose as their approval ratings plummet as a result of a failing economy under Trump. Over 50 members of Congress have announced they will retire this year and not return in 2027.

The Trump Department of Justice, which now has a large image of Trump on the side of it, “sued five new states Thursday [Feb. 26, 2026] demanding access to their unredacted voter rolls — escalating a campaign that has been rejected by multiple federal courts and faces resistance from Republican-led states as well,” according to Democracy Docket, a group that works to protect voting rights.

Trump claimed back in late 2020, the last year of his first term, that he had the authority to issue an executive order related to mail-in voting for the 2020 elections — which he would then lose. But the Constitution states that control of elections lies with the states. As the GOP works to place hurdles in front of voting, Democrats worked to make voting easier.

In March 2021, President Biden signed an executive order calling on federal agencies to expand voting access as part of the Biden Administration’s effort “to promote and defend the right to vote for all Americans who are legally entitled to participate in elections.”

Trump’s focus is clearly on altering the November 2026 midterm elections. Trump’s polling numbers and the elections and special elections that have taken place around the U.S. over the last year clearly indicate that Republicans are about to be hit by a blue wave of Democratic victories.

Lauren Victoria Burke is an independent investigative journalist and the founder of Black Virginia News. She is a political analyst who appears on #RolandMartinUnfiltered and hosts the show LAUREN LIVE on YouTube @LaurenVictoriaBurke. She can be contacted at LBurke007@gmail.com and on twitter at @LVBurke

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PRESS ROOM: NBA Hall of Fame Nominee Terry Cummings Joins 100 Black Men of DeKalb County to Launch Victory & Values Initiative

NNPA NEWSWIRE — NBA Hall of Fame nominee and Basketball Legend Terry Cummings was administered the official member’s oath and ceremonially pinned during a special induction ceremony held on Friday, February 20th.

Published

4 days ago

February 27, 2026

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Cummings becomes an honorary member, joining other role model sports stars

NBA Hall of Fame nominee and Basketball Legend Terry Cummings has officially become an honorary member of the 100 Black Men of DeKalb County, marking a powerful new chapter for the 100 Black Men and youth development across the region.

Cummings was administered the official member’s oath and ceremonially pinned during a special induction ceremony held on Friday, February 20th. The moment signified more than membership — it marked the launch of the organization’s transformative new platform, the Victory & Values Initiative.

The Victory & Values Initiative is a groundbreaking youth development program designed to empower elementary and middle school students through a dynamic blend of sports, mentorship, and STEM exposure. The initiative focuses on building health, discipline, character, leadership, and access to opportunity — creating pathways for long-term academic and personal success.

“This is about more than sports,” said Cummings during the ceremony. “It’s about using the platform of athletics to teach life lessons, create access, and build the next generation of leaders.”

The induction ceremony also featured notable guests including NASCAR’s newest Star Driver, Lavar Scott and NASCAR Director of Athletic Performance, Phil Horton, who joined Cummings for a powerful Victory & Values Town Hall discussion. The Town Hall was moderated by renowned Sports Emcee John Hollins and focused on leadership, resilience, discipline, and the importance of mentorship in shaping young lives.

A “Day at NASCAR” for 75+ Youth

Cummings wasted no time getting to work. On his first full day as an honorary member, he joined his new brothers of the 100 Black Men of DeKalb County to host a “Day at NASCAR,” escorting more than 75 youth to a once-in-a-lifetime experience at EchoPark Motor Speedway (formerly Atlanta Motor Speedway).

The youth participants received behind-the-scenes access including: an exclusive tour of Pit Row, access to the Garage Area and exploration of the interactive Fan Zone.

The experience culminated with a surprise meet-and-greet and Q&A session with NASCAR Superstar Bubba Wallace, who shared insights on perseverance, preparation, and breaking barriers in professional sports.

The day served as a living example of the ‘Victory & Values’ Initiative in action — exposing youth to new industries, expanding their vision for the future, and connecting them directly with high- level mentors and role models.

Building Leaders Through Access and Mentorship

The 100 Black Men of DeKalb County – a chapter of the largest, national mentoring organization in the county – continues to expand its footprint with programs focused on academic excellence, economic empowerment, leadership development, and health & wellness.

The launch of ‘Victory & Values’ represents a strategic expansion of the organization’s impact

intentionally integrating athletics and STEM to engage youth at an early age while reinforcing core principles such as integrity, accountability, teamwork, and perseverance.

“Our mission has always been to mentor the next generation,” said Vaughn Irons, President-Elect of the 100 Black Men of DeKalb County. “With Terry Cummings joining the brotherhood, along with partners in NASCAR and professional sports, we are creating unprecedented access and exposure for our youth. Victory & Values is about turning inspiration into structured opportunity.”

By connecting elementary and middle school students to professional athletes, executives, STEM professionals, and community leaders, the initiative aims to:

Increase youth exposure to careers in sports business, engineering, and performance science
Strengthen mentorship pipelines
Promote physical wellness and mental resilience
Build character-driven leadership at an early age

Open Invitation to Youth and Families

All youth are invited to participate in the Victory & Values Initiative, along with the other countless, impactful programs offered by the 100 Black Men of DeKalb County.

Parents and guardians seeking mentorship, leadership development, academic enrichment, and transformative exposure opportunities for their children are encouraged to connect with the organization.

As NBA Legend Terry Cummings’ induction demonstrates, Victory & Values is more than a program — it is a movement designed to build champions in life, not just in sports.

For more information about the Victory & Values Initiative or to enroll a student, contact: 100 Black Men of DeKalb County at Phone at 404.241.1338, info@100bmod.org or Tee Foxx at 404.791.6525,