A Sixers celebration, wedding-style Iverson marries in intimate affair, surrounded by team and family She walked down the aisle to the traditional "Bridal March." He walked down the aisle to the more modern song "I'll Be There."  Together, Mr. and Mrs. Allen Ezail Iverson made the return trip up the aisle to the sounds of "Ease on Down the Road." Their wedding Friday night at the Mansion in Voorhees started an hour late and ended shortly after 2:30 a.m., with the groom's mother handing out bottles of wine and flowers to cheering onlookers. After nine years and two children, the wedding of Iverson, 26, and Tawanna Nicole Turner, 25, was an intimate affair, as intimate as a celebrity's wedding with 210 guests could be. The guest list was not studded with NBA stars and Hollywood royalty, as popularly believed; instead, there were dozens of aunts, uncles, cousins and friends from Virginia, where the couple are from.  The Sixers showed up in force: Dikembe Mutombo; Aaron McKie and girlfriend Kianna; Eric Snow and his very pregnant wife, DeShawn; George Lynch and wife Julie; Tyrone Hill, chipper even though he had just been traded; coach Larry Brown, wife Shelly and brother Herb; general manager Billy King.  Even former team president Pat Croce, who, after a mix-up with a mailed invitation, got a last-minute phone invitation.  The couple "wanted something cool, chic and hip," said the wedding planner, Lisa Wagner of Enchanting Affairs in Denville, N.J. Something different. And something private.  They gave Wagner a date and a budget, which she would not disclose. "But everything fell into place," said Wagner, who has been staging high-profile weddings for 12 years. The bride "had an idea of what she wanted," Wagner said. "Something not cookie-cutter."  And yes, Iverson - who cultivates such a macho image - was directly involved with the details, she said. For many guests, it was their first experience with the kind of security usually reserved for meetings with heads of state. The location had not been given out in advance. Most guests were told to meet at 4 p.m. at several Center City hotels, where security guards checked their identification and gave them velvet ribbons to pin on their right lapels. Their left hands were stamped with invisible ink. At 5:40 p.m., at the height of a summertime Friday rush, the buses left and met a caravan of limousines. They stopped at the First Union Center for more guests and headed to the Mansion. They arrived about 6:30, driving past television crews and cheering onlookers.  Inside, trumpets heralded their arrival. They picked up their place cards from a silk-covered table topped with a floral arrangement of garden roses, garnet hydrangea, dahlias, and rust James Storey orchids in an antique urn, underlit with clusters of garnet luminaries.  A stretch Humvee discharged Iverson and son Allen 2d, who is 3, about 6:45. Ann Iverson, the groom's mother, arrived after 7.  Instead of numbers, tables carried names such as "Hope," "Faith," "Trust" and "Commitment." The guests were ushered into a room for the ceremony, where they sat on cushioned cane chairs and listened to Pachelbel's Canon in D and waited some more.  Finally, the bridal party of 26 entered. There were three best men: Michael Freeman, who basically reared Iverson as a son; Gary Moore, his business manager; and Andre Steele, a childhood friend. Among the nine groomsmen were Henry "Que" Gaskins, a business associate; Uncles Gregory and Stephen Iverson; and friends Rahsaan Langford, Joseph Prince, Walter Rhoden and Lamont Tilton. They wore custom-made tuxedos with seven-button black jackets and six-button white vests - perhaps a subtle "7-6" reference.  Matron of honor was Chanel Overton, wife of former Sixer Doug Overton. Maid of honor was Brandy Freeman, Iverson's sister. Among the six bridesmaids in black strapless gowns with black shawls were Shayla Moore, daughter of Gary Moore; Gaskins' wife, Cynthia; and Carrie Lawrence, girlfriend of former teammate Larry Hughes. Children Tiaura, 6, and Allen 2d ("Deuce" to his daddy) were designated "junior bride and groom" and dressed in custom formal wear. While "I'll Be There" played, Iverson walked down the aisle, escorting his mother to her seat. He then went to the back and returned with Deuce, father and son holding hands. Turner, in an ivory, strapless creation from Ardmore shop Suky Rosan, was escorted by her mother, Sheila, to the tune of Richard Wagner's "Bridal March."  When Iverson let go of Deuce's hand to approach his bride, the 3-year-old burst into tears. The Rev. Jerome Barber of Hampton, Va., delighted guests during the 25-minute ceremony, guests reported. "When times are hard," he instructed the couple, don't call on others to make things right. "Call on God," he said. The couple lit a unity candle and exchanged vows and rings. Robin Victor and Gary Diggs sang "The Lord's Prayer" in honor of Lawrence Turner, the bride's late father, and Ethel Mitchell, Iverson's late grandmother. ("It was very spiritual, very personal. It reflected the type of people they are - very private and warm," Wagner said.) Guests clapped as the smiling couple left to the strains of "Ease on Down the Road," from The Wiz. While the bridal party posed for photos, guests went to the second floor, where food stations were set up. This was merely cocktail hour. Wagner had constructed a 15-foot spray of branches stemming from a large pedestal urn. The branches bent over the room, creating a romantic feel. Six large palm trees stood in the center of the room in containers with bases of wheat grass. Stemming from those bases were metal rods adorned with glass globes, filled with floating candles. Butlers also passed out hot hors d'oeuvres, including spring rolls, beef satay, sesame chicken, and shrimp and lobster risotto.  It was nearly 10 p.m. by the time guests were ushered up the hundred-foot spiral staircase - adorned with a rolling baroque garland of citrus leaves, roses, hydrangea and meadow berries - to the third-floor ballroom for dinner and dancing. Wagner had divided the floor - one side was a warmly lit dining room, the other was a nightclub with a dark curtain around the perimeter of the dance floor, and a lighting system suspended from above. Guests danced to a wide range of music played by DJ Kool. No "Electric Slide" or "Hokey Pokey," Wagner said. Wagner's biggest challenge in achieving "cool, chic and hip" was the Mansion's parquet dance floor. She ordered a black, shiny floor covering from China. In the dining area, guests ate a seven-course dinner of stuffed capon with basmati rice, dried cherries and golden raisins in Gran Marnier sauce; grilled salmon with a citrus sauce; or prime rib au jus.  Tables were covered in champagne organza custom linens, with ink-black velvet runners down the center. In the center of the runners was a collection of clear glass containers filled with white and cream orchids and candles. The children had their own food, as well as a clown and balloon artist. Dessert was the wedding cake, a five-tier creation from Sylvia Weinstock, a chi-chi New York pastry maker. It was yellow sponge cake, bordered in 24-karat gold leaf, with layers of fresh lemon curd and raspberries, plus a layer of carrot cake with coconut.  Guests took home a candle in a clear glass, wrapped in black mesh and tied with a white ribbon.  Wagner was impressed with Iverson's post-wedding behavior. About 2:40 a.m., "Allen and Tawanna walked out, and he went right over to the fans who were there," she said. "Some were camped out from 6 o'clock that morning. He could have just gotten into the limo and driven away."		Author Dianna Marder Michael Klein   Source Inquirer   Return to Articles