“I’m at a teacher conference and there’s a really cute teacher they are trying to set up with a good guy and I immediately thought of you”

Abby and Austin’s story begins with that message from Austin’s cousin, Erica. It was May 2023. The two exchanged a few messages, but neither are very good at small talk, so the prelude to this story ended about as soon as it began.

God couldn’t have made this any easier for Austin to find his future wife, and he still whiffed. Fast forward to August, God knew what he needed Abby to do to get Austin to reconsider. Abby joined The Prevail Gym.

As a longtime Prevailer, Austin saw the opportunity while also knowing there was no way to avoid this potentially awkward encounter, so he tried again. The two exchanged messages one night, and Austin asked Abby on a date after class the next morning.

It, again, wasn’t easy. The two never settled on a date, and the messages began tapering off. Abby broke the ice a few nights with a very impactful message, “Heyy”. As all humans know, that extra ‘y’ told Austin he must take this seriously. The two finally settled on a date at Los Amigos on September 14, 2023.

The date went great. As two people that had never really talked face-to-face, it lasted three hours and only ended because the restaurant was closing. But Abby was hesitant. She was nervous about getting in a serious relationship. Again, Austin wasn’t sure if this was going to go anywhere. Again, Austin was wrong. It’s only fitting that the breakthrough of this story came at the wedding of Shannon & Patrick Campbell, the owner of Prevail and her husband.

Abby and Austin shared their first dance that night. There’s been no doubt ever since.

The two spent more and more time with each other, and they became official on October 19, 2023. As their bond grew, the summer of 2024 presented a challenge that neither expected. Austin lost his job, and soon after began the process of co-founding his own company, NEMO Pressbox. Abby supported him every step of the way. Those days left Austin with no doubt that he had found ‘the one’.

One year to the day of becoming official, on October 19, 2024, Abby and Austin had a fall photoshoot at Rothwell Park. Waiting until the last minute, Austin wanted one final picture, a flexing pic. After the two “did the Austin”, as they call it at Prevail, Austin popped the question.

You have reached the end of Chapter 1. This story still has a lot to be written…