BY JE’DON HOLLOWAY-TALLEY | Special to the Birmingham Times
JIMMIE & DEBORAH JOHNSON
Live: Birmingham [in the Westchester Community]
Married: April 19, 1975
Met: June 1965, at their childhood church, Emmanuel Temple Holiness Church, then located on the southside of Birmingham. Jimmie was 11 years old when his family began attending, and 10-year-old Deborah’s family were already longstanding members.
“When I saw her, it was my impression that she was the one I wanted to marry; it was love at first sight. I kept my eyes on her and stayed focused, and the same love that I had for her then is the love I have for her now. I saw those green eyes, and long hair, and she was quiet and reserved and I liked that about her because all of the other girls were wild and crazy… Opposites attract, because I was wild and crazy too,” Jimmie laughed.
Deborah was not yet boy crazy. “I was a child,” Deborah said, “I wasn’t thinking about no husband, but I did think he was cute. He always dressed well and carried himself in a decent manner. He was never mannish towards m …. All of the other girls wanted him, but I was reserved, so I said, ‘y’all go right on head.’ But he chased me down over the years,” she laughed.
Jimmie and Deborah cultivated their young friendship, always riding side by side on the church bus to different outings. Jimmie recalls attending the fair together with the church in 1967, and said that was their first date because “I won you a bear and bought you cotton candy… I had a couple dollars because I was shining shoes downtown on the weekend,” Jimmie said. However, Deborah doesn’t consider that the first date. “Our first date wasn’t until you were able to pick me up and drive me somewhere,” she laughed.
First date: Summer 1971. Jimmie was now 18, and Deborah was 17. They went on their first dinner date to a new steakhouse in Birmingham called Bonanza. Jimmie picked her up from her home in Powderly in his blue GTO.
“I had been gone for about six months to New York where I worked with my brothers in the industrial industry,” he said. “I was back in church and ready to resume the life I had put on hold, and I knew that I [wanted to lay the groundwork to making her my wife] so I began talking to her about marriage on that first date,” Jimmie recalled.
“I felt like I was still kinda young, and I didn’t come from a home where there were a lot of married couples, so I was trying to figure out how we were going to make this happen. His whole plan kinda had me dumbfounded, but I was interested,” Deborah laughed. “I enjoyed Jimmie’s company and I liked his plan, I just didn’t know how we’d make it happen within the next few years.”
The turn: Between the years 1971 and 1973, Jimmie was back and forth from Birmingham to New York to work with his brothers. He would come back every six months, take Deborah on a few dates, and make sure that her heart still belonged to him. In the fall 1973, he returned for good, got a local job.
“After that date at Bonanza, I began giving her money to put in the bank to save for our future. And when I got back home [to Birmingham] I got a job and I got paid every Thursday… Thursday wasn’t a church night so that was our dedicated date night. I would come pick her up and take her out, give her money, and we’d talk about our future on the dates.
“I felt like he really did love me because of his actions,” Deborah said. “He always took me into consideration whenever we would talk about the future, and he would put me first. And growing up without a father figure and not seeing many married couples in my family, he gave me a safety and security that I had never had from any man and that made me fall more and more in love with him.”
The proposal: Dec. 7, 1974, at the church’s deacon dinner in Hoover, at the Ramada Hotel. “I asked her to step away with me and we went into the lobby. I had the ring in my pocket, and I said I know we’ve already talked a lot about this, but I want to make it official. I took the ring out of my pocket and opened the box and asked her if she would marry me and put the ring on her finger. She said ‘yes’, and then we walked back into the dinner.
“When we went back in, I started telling my friends, they were all excited for us, and I was excited too,” Deborah said. “It was excitement galore. We were about to start living out the plans that we had been making for years.”
The word spread that night, and before it was over, one of the church leaders announced their engagement and everyone celebrated with the couple.
The wedding: At Faith Apostolic Church in Birmingham, officiated by the late Elder Heron Johnson, and their colors were mint green, white, and black.
Most memorable for the bride was waking up to gloomy weather on her wedding day. “When we woke up that Saturday morning, it was raining, and there’s an old saying ‘the weather is indicative of what type of marriage you’re going to have’ and that had me slightly sad. But later on that day, about an hour before the wedding started, the sun came up and that made my heart so happy,” Deborah recalled.
Most memorable for the groom was a moment with his brother-in-law that they later found was caught on tape. “My brother-in-law, Robert Lee Pettus [his sister, Earnestine’s husband] was one of the few people at the time that I knew who had a camcorder, it didn’t even have audio, and he was taping the wedding… And during the kiss, he couldn’t get into a good position to [get it on tape], so during the reception, he came back around with the camera and told me he wanted to get a kiss on tape. I said, ‘let me ask Deborah,’ and she said ‘no’ And it’s funny to me because when we watched the tape back, you can see me asking [Deborah], and her shaking her head, and me turning right around to him and telling him she said ‘no,’” Jimmy laughed.
They honeymooned in the Poconos mountains in Pennsylvania. “Most people in our era were not taking honeymoons, but Deborah had found the resort in a magazine, and said she wanted to go there for a honeymoon, so we planned it. And the morning after the wedding, we took off to the mountains in the Poconos from Birmingham, and I remember the heart-shaped bed and bath tub,” Jimmy said. “And it was both of our first time flying, so we got to take our first flight together.”
Words of wisdom: “Keep your business to yourself. Whatever happens in your household, keep it between you and your spouse. And if you have to share with someone, make sure they’re really someone you can confide in. Keep God in the center, remember your vows, honor, love, and respect each other. Trust the process and stick with it, because [if you do] before you know it, you’ll be married 50 years,” said Deborah. “And, love conquers all.”
“Marry someone you are truly in love with because only love can cover a multitude of faults. When you truly love someone, you can’t imagine life without them, and you’ll find a way to work it out. I fell in love with Deborah at an early age, and that love is the backbone of our marriage. I love her and can’t imagine my life without her,” Jimmy said. “Some people marry for money, fame, lust, convenience… and none of those things can sustain a marriage. But when you marry for love, it endures.”
Happily ever after: The Johnson’s attend Now Faith Empowerment Temple in north Birmingham, where Jimmie serves as the new pastor, following his predecessor, Evangelist Alecia McCarter’s recent passing, and Deborah, as the First Lady. They have two adult children, Jimmie Johnson Jr., and Dimetria Kelly, ten grandchildren, and six great grandchildren.
Deborah, 70, is a southside Birmingham native, and Jones Valley High School grad. She attended Southern Business College in Birmingham, where she earned a secretarial certificate. Deborah retired from the Birmingham Department of Veteran Affairs in 2018, after 14 years. Deborah and Jimmie enjoy riding their motorcycles, and state side travel via the Amtrak train. She helps take care of her mother and enjoys playing with her grandchildren.
Jimmie, 71, is a native of the west Birmingham, and attended West End High School. His senior year he relocated to Nyack, New York, where he went into the industrial industry and went to school to become an overhead crane operator. He came back to Birmingham in 1973, and worked for Chicago Bridge and Iron until they closed. He eventually began working for Pathology Associates of Alabama, where he was a medical courier, and retired in 2015. He now enjoys his leisure traveling with his wife, riding their motorcycles, and is excited about pastoring.
“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.
