How It All Began:

Ryan and Alanna’s story started somewhere that now feels perfectly fitting — the ice rink in Riverside. At the time, Alanna worked in the box office and often noticed Ryan checking in under the name “Soupy” on the computer system. Little did she know she would one day share his last name.

One night before a hockey game, Ryan walked into the locker room and was surprised to see Alanna lacing up her skates. He was instantly impressed by her hockey knowledge during pre-game conversations, but what really caught his attention came later that night when Alanna scored the game-winning goal. From that moment on, Ryan knew he wanted to get to know her better.

With the help of Ryan’s friend and team captain Greg and his girlfriend Grace, the two were set up on a pool-party blind date at Greg’s house. While Greg and Grace may have awkwardly nudged them into conversation at first, it worked out.

If you know Ryan and Alanna, you know how much they bond over sports, so it only makes sense that their first kiss happened at an Angels game during their first official date — right after a Shohei Ohtani home run.

Over the past seven years, Ryan and Alanna have continued to push and support each other in every chapter of life. Alanna encouraged Ryan as he completed his bachelor’s degree in Sports & Entertainment Marketing at CSUSB, while Alanna went on to achieve both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Kinesiology from CSUF. Together, they’ve built a relationship rooted in laughter, teamwork, and always showing up for one another. Now after 7.5 years, they’re so excited to start the next chapter of their lives.

The Proposal:

On a trip to Banff National Park, Ryan planned what would become the perfect proposal, even if it didn’t go exactly as expected. What was originally supposed to be a picturesque moment skating on Lake Louise quickly turned into Plan B, and then Plan C, thanks to weather that had other ideas.

With hockey skates packed, Ryan suggested a short road trip to find a lake to play hockey on. After only finding a pond that was questionable to skate, Ryan had one last spot for them to check out - Lake Minnewanka. As the snow began to fall heavily, Alanna reluctantly got out of the car and followed him to the lake. Standing there together near the water, watching the snowfall, everything grew quiet and they felt like they’d wandered into a real-life snowglobe.

Alanna rested her head on Ryan’s chest for a second and felt his heartbeat racing. They took a few photos together, and then Ryan shot one from behind to capture the snow-covered lake. When Alanna turned around, she saw him kneeling there, saying her full name and asking, “Will you marry me?”

He’d even secretly booked a photographer to capture the whole thing, so they spent the next hour discussing all the details and taking photos in the snow - the kind of photos that make you so glad you got out of the car.

If you’re reading this, please know how incredibly important you are to Ryan and Alanna’s story. They cannot wait to celebrate this next chapter surrounded by the people they love most.