Matchmakers Made Them a Match

New York Times

09-05-2025

Madiba Keneisha Dennie and Nicholas Andrew Bishop both wanted serious relationships when they met in May 2017 through the matchmaking service Dating Ring. Ms. Dennie had been a member since early 2016, and Mr. Bishop joined in 2015. The now-defunct business entailed matchmakers interviewing singles in person to suggest the best potential partners.
'After a year of being a member, Nicholas was the first person I was matched with,' Ms. Dennie said. 'The matchmaker said that he was a feminist and working at a startup to repurpose old laptops for schools. He was someone who cared about the world like me.'
'I hadn't clicked with anyone,' Mr. Bishop said of other women he'd been set up with. 'The matchmaker told me that Madiba and I had a shared interest in science fiction and in helping people. That grabbed my interest.'
They messaged through Dating Ring's site for a few days before Mr. Bishop asked Ms. Dennie for a coffee date. They met the afternoon of May 25 at Think Coffee near Manhattan's Washington Square Park, a halfway point between their offices.
Ms. Dennie walked in to find Mr. Bishop waiting for her and said she noticed 'how cute' he was. 'He had a big smile,' she said.
It didn't take long for the two to decide they liked each other. They fell into a long conversation about their professions, their similar upbringings in rural areas, and their shared passion for social justice.
'I was drawn to how Madiba is someone who was hopeful about the world and the potential of human beings to care for each other,' Mr. Bishop said. 'We also joked and laughed a lot.'
The three hours they spent together passed by in 'a flash,' they said, and they parted ways, eager to meet again.
Their second date took place less than a week later, over drinks and dinner at Cask Bar & Kitchen in Murray Hill. 'There was something about Madiba that made me completely open and unfiltered,' Mr. Bishop said. 'I'm not usually like that.'
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By their third meeting, Mr. Bishop said that he was sure that he wanted a committed relationship with Ms. Dennie. They shared Korean fried chicken at the now-closed restaurant Bunsmith in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, and headed to Mr. Bishop's apartment nearby for more conversation and drinks. 'We sat on the living room couch and kept inching closer to one another, both wanting to kiss,' Ms. Dennie said. 'Our resolve broke soon enough.'
The following summer, they began discussing marriage and, in early 2019, moved in to a 'dream' rental, as both described it, with park views in the Prospect Park South neighborhood of Brooklyn, where they still live.
Ms. Dennie, 33, was born in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and grew up in Leonardtown, Md. She has a bachelor's degree in politics from Princeton and a law degree from Columbia. She works as a deputy editor and senior contributor at Balls and Strikes, a legal commentary outlet based in Washington, D.C.
Mr. Bishop, 37, is from Cleveland, S.C. He holds a bachelor's degree in computer science from the University of Maryland and works as a senior software engineer at Google in New York.
The pair said the Black Lives Matter protests in the summer of 2020 brought them even closer because of Mr. Bishop's actions during a march. 'Nicholas marched with me, and there was a moment when a cop was about to pin me against a barrier,' she said. 'Nicholas blocked him to keep me safe. I realized how much he really loved me.'
Mr. Bishop said that protecting Ms. Dennie came naturally. 'The cops weren't going after white people, only Black people,' said Mr. Bishop, who is white. Ms. Dennie is Black. 'I had a heightened awareness of how at risk her race made her.'
They became engaged in April 2024 during a picnic in Prospect Park. 'I was taking a bite of my hot ham, cheese and egg sandwich when Nicholas suddenly sat up, got on one knee, and asked me to be his wife,' Ms. Dennie said. 'I knew that this was coming, but I didn't expect it to be then.'
They were married a year later, on April 26, before 100 guests at the Prospect Park Picnic House. Ms. Dennie's younger sister, Nneka Dennie, who received a one-day ordination certificate from the state of New York for the occasion, officiated.
They chose the location because the park is close to their hearts.
Their reception included several tributes to Ms. Dennie's Caribbean roots and Maryland upbringing, including music from Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and crab cakes made with Old Bay Seasoning.
'Nicholas's family had never heard Caribbean music before,' Ms. Dennie said. 'But they let loose with my family and friends on the dance floor.'