Redeemer Orthodox Presbyterian Church

Wedding Day

Ceremony

Our Wedding

How it began...

Anna's perspective:I was interested in Caleb since my second week of maintenance school at SMAT in 2022. However, I wouldn't let myself entertain thoughts of dating and relationships since I was on a mission to complete my training as a mission pilot and get to the field (I was hoping to go to Papua New Guinea). During my maintenance year I was encouraged to apply for the flight year, even though originally I had no plans of finishing my pilot training there due to finances. But the Lord provided and I began raising support to attend the flight year in 2023-2024. I knew Caleb was on staff as a flight instructor, but I also figured he would be moving on to JAARS by the time I went through the program. Besides, I couldn't possibly imagine he would be interested in dating ME?! Caleb initially caught my eye for his interest in serving with JAARS and wanting to serve in Papua New Guinea. It was rare to find a guy passionately following Christ onto the mission field... this one just apparently seemed completely uninterested in finding a partner for ministry. After graduating from school at SMAT in 2024 I moved to JAARS in NC three weeks later to continue preparations for the mission field. Caleb moved to JAARS in January 2025 to finish his final training for serving as a pilot in PNG. We found ourselves hanging out in the same groups, whether it was rock climbing, board game nights, or sports. Let's just say he rocked my world when, in mid-July, he finally started talking to me about beginning a relationship. After that, we started dating and I found the Lord had prepared the perfect match for me in Caleb. I thank the Lord daily for his godly leadership, faithfulness to the missional call on our lives, and his endless ways of making me laugh. The rest is his story...

Caleb's perspective: As a guy, I lived up to the stereotype of being more stubborn and dense. As a flight instructor at SMAT, I had noticed Anna when she first came to SMAT in 2022 for her maintenance training. I mean, it's hard for a single guy not to notice a cute gal. The problem was that since she was already a private pilot, she wanted to get a rental checkout to use SMAT's aircraft. Our first flight together was on September 29, since I, of course, was the instructor that administered the checkout flights. Consequently, I convinced myself that I wouldn't date a student of mine. Looking back, I think I was really just unwilling to give up control of "my" timeline for getting to the mission field - after all, if she was just a student, she would be following a couple years behind me. A relationship with her would mean waiting an extra year or two before going overseas! The plot thickened when I felt God's nudge to stay at SMAT an extra year to help cover for the staffing shortage - and Anna also decided to enroll in the 2023-24 flight program as well (Could God have made it more obvious?). I'm usually oblivious to women's signs too, but I had already picked up the hint that she liked me; however, I was still wrestling with my own desires. After receiving great advice from my fellow instructor, Matt, to address the situation, I moved ahead at the speed of a dead sloth... and continued to ignore the elephant in the room. I saw her flight class through to graduation in August '24 before I left SMAT, bound for JAARS. But God clearly didn't want the two of us apart. After graduating, Anna accepted an apprenticeship position with JAARS. Although 2025 found us back in the same environment - except this time she wasn't my student - I still dragged my feet, returning to my excuse that it would take her a few more years to get to the field. But God had other plans in mind. With one final, dummy-proof sign, God sped up Anna's timeline, so that she would be getting to PNG in the spring of 2026. With the message finally through my thick skull, I decided to talk with her about it... then take her on a date... then start dating... then get engaged! ... all within the span of this past summer! After all, God was unmistakably putting us together, and once I finally set aside my stubbornness, I discovered that Anna was the perfect match to my passions, interests, and dreams!

Anna & Caleb

Anna & Caleb

Photos

September 04, 2023

August 16, 2024

September 09, 2024

January 21, 2025

July 30, 2025

September 07, 2025

September 21, 2025

October 24, 2025