Erika and Cullen met when they were just 15 in the marching band room at Cypress Bay High School in Weston, Florida. He only had eyes for his snare drum, but she thought he was cute. Their best friends were dating, and willing conspirators to help the clarinetist get the attention of the percussionist. Through Erika's sheer will and persistence, Cullen soon realized that it may be time for a girlfriend. During halftime at a Cypress Bay football game their sophomore year, Cullen asked Erika to go out with him. Little did that young lad know that she would be his first and last girlfriend!

By senior year, as college applications rolled around, the two were unsure of their paths forward, but ultimately, they took a leap of faith and decided that no matter where each of them attended school, they wanted to stick together ... And they did! Throughout their long-distance relationship, Cullen was competing in DCI and WGI ensembles that took him around the country, and Erika was doing internships and studying abroad in Germany. But they managed through many FaceTime calls and trips to visit each other (including Paris!).

After Erika graduated from the University of Florida, she received an offer from Texas Instruments to move to Dallas. The two knew they didn't need to have a conversation about the move. Cullen was right on board, and joined Erika in Dallas as he finished up his last semester at the University of Central Florida.

Dallas has been their home since 2020, and they now have a beautiful home in Sachse, with their two cats, Archie and Vespa. Erika continues her work as a software engineer with TI, and Cullen teaches 8th grade U.S. History in the Richardson Independent School District. They enjoy rock climbing, weekend getaways camping and traveling, and exploring Dallas' breweries.