It all started in June of 2017 when the staff of the Christian Recreation Program met for the first time on staff training day. We were grouped by the areas we were going to be working in that summer, and because Cole and I were both assigned to field games that year, we were seated next to each other. We introduced ourselves, and I didn't think anything of it. However, Cole will tell you that he cracked a joke during the meeting, and I did not laugh. But I promise that I simply did not hear him! It then became his one goal to make me laugh that summer.

Needless to say, he succeeded, and I was smitten by his love for the children we were working with and his love for the Lord. This being said, I refused to go on a date with him while we were still working together as I didn't want a potential relationship to impact our time caring for the precious kiddos we saw every day. Finally, the looooooooong six weeks of camp ended, and I agreed to go on a first date with him to Adams Park in August. The following week, he asked me to be his girlfriend, and our relationship officially began. However, it was not an easy journey as two weeks into dating, Cole had to move away to start his freshman year of college at Grove City.

After graduating, Cole took a job and moved out to Lancaster, PA, making the distance from me at Saint Francis University even farther. While a long-distance relationship is never easy, we made it work throughout the many years apart. It was quite clear to both of us that this relationship was going to last forever. On November 30, 2021, I was on break from school and visiting Cole while I did some shadowing at Lancaster General Hospital. At 6 o'clock that morning as I was just about to leave to head to the hospital, he asked me to marry him. I was beyond surprised as he caught me off guard, and I could not say anything, but yes, yes, YES! (About ten times in a row).

We are looking forward to getting married in the very same church where we first met six long years ago and finally getting to end our long-distance relationship as I join Cole out in York, PA. Our story together, while it has history, has only begun, and we cannot wait to continue laughing with joy together as we pursue each other while pursuing Christ.