Allie and I met on our first day of seminary in Durham, a mandatory “Sabbath” retreat spent pulling weeds and sweating in the August heat. While this environment made for, let’s say, humble first impressions, we continued to get to know one another in our “Introduction to the Ministry of Social Work” class during our first semester. For most of seminary, our friendship was marked by mutual admiration and randomly deep conversations every four months or so. We were never single at the same time for the first 2.5 years of school, so we remained just friends.


This changed in January of 2024, the start of our last semester at Duke. When we arrived on campus for an intensive week of class for our “hybrid” courses, we found ourselves distracted from class and more and more focused on trying to spend time together. We took turns looking for each other to “study” together on Duke’s campus, and when we finally found one another, our books and laptops mostly stayed closed. Our conversations were way more interesting than class and led to me missing several lectures, a decision I don’t regret at all. It didn’t take long to realize there was something more than friendship happening between us. 


On January 27th, we went for a walk around Allie’s neighborhood. After about 30 minutes of the most Divinity-school-conversation you can imagine, I finally worked up the courage to tell her how much I had grown to like (like-like) her. Thankfully, the feeling went both ways, and we made plans for our first date four days later. I felt great about Allie then, and this was only confirmed when our first date went for 11 hours. We went all around Durham, including a stop for Eucharistic Adoration at the chapel, a classic first-date activity. If you’re wondering how into Allie I was at this point, know that I responded to all her texts in a timely manner; let those with ears to hear, hear. 


We continued going on dates and started “officially” dating on February 20th. We packed a lot into the following months: we met families, made plans to move to the Charlotte area, and graduated. We also made it through wisdom tooth surgeries and subsequent dry sockets (me), the busiest schedule possible as a hospital chaplain (Allie), and ~40 hours in the car between NC and MN (both of us). Somewhere along the way, it became impossible to imagine spending our lives with anyone else. After talking to Allie’s parents at the Sully’s Steamers in Greenville, SC, I bought a ring and got ready to propose to Allie on August 17th. That evening, we went down to Allie’s grandparents’ house for a “dinner,” where I proposed on their back patio. That night, which ended with an engagement party with friends who drove/flew for hours to celebrate with us, will always be one of our most special memories. It was fast, but I’ve never felt so confident about a decision. 


Since getting engaged, we’ve begun settling into life in the Charlotte area. We’ve met new friends, visited old ones, and made more trips up and down I-77 between Davidson and Charlotte than either of us would prefer. Suffice to say, we are very ready to be married. If you’re reading this, we’re so thankful for your presence in our lives, and we can’t wait to celebrate with you in April!