‘I Told Her How Much I Loved Her and How [The Ring] Was Long Overdue’

BY JE’DON HOLLOWAY-TALLEY | Special to the Birmingham Times ANTOINETTE AND ADOLPHUS PLUMP III Live: Smithfield Married: Dec. 1, 1990 Met: They met as children at the historic 16th Street Baptist Church in downtown Birmingham, which was bombed by the Klu Klux Klan in September of 1963, claiming the lives of four girls. Both of their families had been lifelong members. In the summer of 1976, when they were 16 and 17 years old, Antoinette sparked a connection when she instigated a game of chase during youth choir rehearsal. “For some reason, I had my cap off during rehearsal and she just kept making eyes at me… I was really intrigued by that because I wore glasses and people considered me a nerd, and I was very shy,” Adolphus recalled. “Back then, guys used to have to know how to ‘rap’ to a girl, and that’s when you can talk to them real smooth, and I was shy, so I didn’t rap,” he laughed. “After rehearsal, I had to chase her around the church to get my cap back and that let me know [there was interest] and I guess that’s when we started our puppy love.” “We had always...