The story of Rachael and Chris began a long time ago when the two met at a local Battle of the Bands at William Allen High School in Allentown, PA; an event Rachael herself had organized. The two were introduced by mutual friends, she the spunky, energetic rocker-chick, and he the outgoing loudmouthed emo kid. The two instantly had a connection and bonded over their shared love of music. At the time, however, Chris was unavailable and the two remained friends.

Through the next few years the two remained in contact and would see each other at various events and parties with their mutual friend group. One of their earliest memories was attending the Jimmy Eat World show at the Allentown Fairgrounds back in 2002. It wasn't until Chris's junior year while at Penn State University that the two started to become closer. The two began talking a lot more and Rachael had gone to visit Chris at State College on a couple of occasions. That summer, the two of them began a brief relationship and it was obvious early on, that there was a deep connection between the two and the chemistry between them was undeniable. However, as things sometimes go with young love, the timing just wasn't right. The relationship abruptly ended that summer when Rachael was "scared off" by how quickly the two were becoming close and by their feelings for each other. It turns out, you're not always ready for such a serious relationship at such a young age.

Understandably, Chris was hurt by the end of the relationship and held quite the "grudge" for many years because he knew he had found something incredibly special in Rachael. He even went as far as changing her contact in his phone to Rachael "Almost" and her old phone number remains in his contacts list under this name as a constant reminder of the "one that got away." Chris remembers times peeking into Wet Seal and Aldo while shopping at the Lehigh Valley Mall, just to try and get a glimpse of Rachael from afar, while simultaneously missing her and cursing under his breath.

Fast forward about 15 years, after the two had been through multiple relationships and varied life experiences, they again began running into each other during nights out with mutual friends. It's no secret, that the first time Chris saw her, he prayed that she would not come over to his table because he was still hurt by how their young love had ended, even though the very sight of her brought those pesky little butterflies back into the pit of his stomach.

Of course, Chris's friends called Rachael over and quickly the two were intrigued by each other and hit it off like it was 2002 all over again. After Rachael had gone through a messy break up Chris reached out to let her know that he was thinking about her and to remind her what an amazing, beautiful person she is and he promised her that one day, she would find the man she deserves who will treat her the way she deserved. Little did she know, that person was right in front of her.

They began chatting and eventually, on Chris's birthday in 2021, with a little liquid courage he asked her out on a proper date. The two agreed to meet up at local McCall Collective Brewery and the decade old spark kicked up the flames of the past and the two knew very quickly that they had found their person, and that they had been right in front of them the entire time. They began spending most of their free time together and eventually moved in together.

On February 11th, 2023 Chris finally popped the question during a candlelight dinner in a private gazebo over the ocean while vacationing in Ocho Rios, Jamaica. The rest, as they say, is history.

Below you will find a link to our engagement video compiled by our wonderful wedding photographers at imagery.life, Mel and Warren Caracciolo.

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The Renaissance Hotel