Rewind about 14 years . . . John and Debbie met through volleyball leagues & tournaments. Though they never played on the same team, they became friends and hung out in the same circles. Then Debbie broke her knee, and she disappeared from the volleyball world . . .

Fast forward to March of 2018. John and Debbie shared a mutual friend (hi Kenny!) that Debbie stayed in touch with after the injury. That friend organized a watch party for the Cinderella Loyola basketball team in the Elite Eight of the March Madness tournament. That night, Debbie and John reconnected, but in a way they never had before - they talked more closely and deeply than they had in the past.

After the weekend, John and Debbie began talking and hanging out more and more frequently. By summer, it was a done deal!

After dating for over 4 years, John and Debbie decided it was time to take their children (Shaniah, Charlize, Felicia and Massimo) on their first big family vacation. The 6 of them decided on a Caribbean cruise over New Years 2023. Shortly before leaving, Debbie had a feeling John would propose on New Year’s Eve. Sadly, NYE came and went, and there was no ring ☹️

A couple days after New Year’s, which also happened to be John's birthday, the cruise ship arrived in George Town, Grand Cayman. The 6 of them were scheduled to swim with the sting rays and were up at the crack of dawn waiting for the tender to take them to the island. Then, over the PA of the cruise ship, John's daughter Shaniah was being called to guest services. The authorities in Grand Cayman would not let anyone off the ship until they spoke to her! Shaniah left on her very own tender boat, and John and Debbie weren't sure if and when they would see her again! Luckily, she was able to clear up some passport issues quickly.

Reunited at the port, they boarded their next boat, and headed out to Sting Ray City. After swimming for a bit, Debbie's daughter Felicia told Debbie she thinks she was stung by a sting ray. While her stomach was a little red, Debbie brushed it off and told Felicia she was "fine". Felicia was in fact NOT fine. Millions swim with the sting rays in Grand Cayman every year, who gets stung? Well . . . Felicia does. A couple minutes later, Felicia's stomach was badly welted and the tour guides had to continually clean her wound and cover her stomach with Benadryl cream.

By the time the 6 got back to the cruise ship, it had already been quite the day. But they still had John's special birthday dinner to attend! Being his birthday, the dinner was all about John. He received gifts and cards from the family, and thanked everyone with a nice speech, which eventually led to him getting down on one knee and proposing! Debbie was completely caught by surprise, as at this point she had assumed the ”time” had come and gone. Of course she said yes!