The chances of a Florida girl and a Texas boy meeting, let alone falling in love, are pretty slim, but that’s our story. Both of us moved to Kansas in 2021 under different circumstances—one to be near family for health reasons, and the other to play baseball. Little did we know that God was working to weave our stories together so that we would meet and fall in love.

February 2022…Ashleigh was attending Cornerstone Church with her family while Nate was playing baseball 25 miles away. One of his teammates, Arlen Peters, “just so happened” (Ruth 2:3) to go to the same church as Ashleigh. Arlen continued inviting Nate to try out Cornerstone’s young adults Bible Study and one day, Nate finally said yes.

“Howdy” was the first word Ashleigh heard Nate say when he walked in the room in boots and jeans, and Ashleigh was a goner. After various group hangouts, and a lot of subtle hints, Nate finally caught on that Ashleigh was interested in him and asked her on a date. Our first date was dinner followed by a movie at a drive-in theater. Since then, we’ve seen each other through three major surgeries, the loss of family members and pets, and a variety of major life changes. We both pursued our faith in God together and became passionately involved in ministry, serving our church’s kids, youth, and young adults ministries. After dating for two years, Nate proposed on our family trip to Canada on July 8, 2024 at the Huckleberry Rock Lookout during “family photos” (everyone was in on it except for Ashleigh). After the proposal, we got to celebrate with our family and close friends in our family cottage with many stories and toasts.

We enjoy doing lots of activities together including cooking, baking, playing disc golf, attending sporting events, going for walks, playing Canasta and other games, traveling, singing at the top of our lungs, dancing, serving others, and spending time with family and friends.