Yesterday afternoon, Debra Adlowitz and Brian Zielinski were joined for life in the first wedding ever held at a Wawa convenience store. The newlywed employees, 26 and 31 respectively, had fallen in love during late nights of stocking donuts and counting out Lotto receipts at the Yardley store. 

"This was the only place to get married," said Debbie. "We wouldn't have gotten together unless we'd worked there." 

It was Brian's idea to tie the knot at the convenience store, which, under orders from Wawa Corporate, had to remain open during the ceremony so unsuspecting customers could still get their sandwiches. 

"At first I laughed when he told me," said Debbie who has worked at various Wawas since the age of 16. "But this place really means a lot to us...some people here have seen me grow from a teen-ager to an adult." 

All of the store's employees were on hand that day, scrubbing the floors, hanging up balloons, a testament to the human talent for bonding in the most unlikely and anonymous of places. When asked, they uniformly mentioned the store's "family atmosphere." Wawa, as the jingle goes, "does it just a little bit better." 

As the moment approached, the tiny convenience store filled up with regular customers, ex-employees, and flabbergasted relatives. 

"I really don't know what to say," said Bea McPherson, Debbie's grandmother, decked out in sequins and blue. "This is what they wanted, and this is what they got." 

And then, exactly at 2:30 p.m., as Shania Twain warbled on the CD player, Debra Adlowitz walked in on her daddy's arm, strode beaming past the Tastykakes and went to meet the man she loves in front of the produce section. 

Sniffles were heard in the jam-packed store as Yardley Borough Mayor Ed Johnson began the ceremony. 

"1 offer this ring as a pledge." said Brian, as the Icee machine hummed. 
"1 receive this ring." said Debbie, as the scanner beeped over barcodes.
"Now you may kiss the bride," pronounced Johnson, as the cash register door flew open. 
And then the bride and groom walked out under a bower of batteries. 

The couple met two years ago thanks to Debbie's sister - another employee who worked alongside her husband as a food service manager. She introduced the couple to each other and, after six months, they were hooked. 

There was occasional tension, they said, when shifts overlapped. "At first it was a little frustrating," recalled Brian. because it was too hard to separate personal and work." 

But they learned to stagger their shifts so that Debbie could care for her 4-year-old from her first marriage. Brian has his own youngster from his own previous marriage, a 10-year-old named Devon, who acted as reluctant ring bearer yesterday.

"I feel stupid for doing this. But I don't care," said the boy, tired out by a 9 p.m. rehearsal the night before. 

But aside from Devon's skepticism, the crowd seemed convinced this was the best thing ever to happen, at least at the Yardley Wawa. 

"It's not really important where you get married," said Gladys Weber, a teacher who's been buying her 5:30 a. m. coffee at the Wawa for 17 years. "People have huge beautiful weddings and then they get divorced within a year. I think this is terrific."

This is the end of the road for the Zielinskis and Wawa. After a possible honeymoon in the Poconos, the couple is moving to Cincinnati - a Wawaless place. They'll be closer to Devon's mom there, and they will say goodbye to the 24-hour store that brought them together.