Hayden and Betsy first crossed paths at Oklahoma State on Bid Day in August of 2021. Hayden was introduced to Betsy by a mutual friend while she was waiting for her two best friends outside of Zeta on the lawn - Zeta just so happens to be right next door to the Pike house where Hayden lived at the time. They talked briefly and went their separate ways.

That fall Pike and Zeta are paired for homecoming which results in Betsy making frequent stops by Pike to bring Sonic drinks to her two best friends Brie and Kenzie while they are pomping. Those frequent stops at Pike turned into Hayden eventually giving Betsy her long-awaited tour of Pike.

That fall Hayden and Betsy run into each other from time to time at Stumo, the campus ministry they were both a part of. Thanks to Brie serving at Life.Church with Hayden, Betsy eventually got Hayden's number. They talked back and forth that fall through Homecoming and after several attempts by Hayden to get Betsy to hang out she obliviously declined and then "ghosted" him, and they went their separate ways for a whole year.

In the fall of their junior year, Betsy and Hayden run into each other again at Stumo night where they end up briefly talking about their summers. Hayden had gone back to Decatur, Texas that summer to intern at his home church, and Betsy had spent her second summer at Kaleo, a two-month discipleship program in Orlando, Florida.

Betsy was encouraged by the ways that Hayden had grown in the past year and admired his heart for The Church and the faithfulness it required to share the Gospel in the Pike house. Hayden had finally caught Betsy's attention so much that she decided to go home and text him about how encouraged she was by him.

That one text from Betsy led to Hayden asking Betsy to hang out again. This time she said "YES!"

That "YES" turned into talking for three hours over coffee where Hayden and Betsy started to really get to know each other. Two days later with some helpful encouragement from Jack, Hayden showed up at Betsy's door with flowers and a bag of chocolate croissants in hand to officially ask her on a date.

Six wonderful dates later, while eating Braum's ice cream in the driveway of Hayden's house, Betsy was getting impatient and finally asked Hayden what they were doing. With a smile, he turned on Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas Is You," grabbed her hand, and asked Betsy to be his girlfriend. She happily accepted.

Over the next year of dating, they fell more in love - spending their time together cooking, watching movies, rating the food and movies they watched, and learning more about each other along the way.

On March 9th, 2024, Betsy was eating chocolate croissants that her friend Kate had brought by with her roommates when someone walked in the door. Taking a brief pause, Betsy was in shock to see Brie standing there with a letter in hand. Brie handed the letter to Betsy where she read the first line "Dear Betsy Allison Hurst..." The letter from Hayden explained that they were getting engaged that day and expressed how much he loved Betsy. Over the next few hours, Betsy got ready with her closest friends, reminiscing on when Hayden first asked her on a date. At 2 pm, Hayden showed up at Betsy's door and they drove to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Once there, Hayden and Betsy nervously walked through the Philbrook Museum of Art. Shortly after walking through the museum, Hayden led Betsy out to the garden where he he dropped to one knee and asked Betsy to spend the rest of her life with him.

Hayden and Betsy look forward to a lifetime of dancing in the kitchen, traveling the world, serving the Church, and making disciples for Christ alongside one another in the covenant of marriage. They cannot wait to see where the Lord leads them in marriage together!

xoxo