Joe and Halley first saw each other at St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Dallas on May 14, 2022. Halley was a parishioner there; Joe had attended a number of churches during the year he had lived in Dallas. Halley was standing in line for confession when Joe entered the church for confession, too. They were immediately struck by each other. In fact, in a conversation with his brother Jake later that evening, Joe jokingly said he needed to become a parishioner at St. Thomas Aquinas because of the beautiful girl he had seen there.

Shortly thereafter, Joe, as a lover of music, began to regularly attend St. Thomas Aquinas’s Saturday evening mass, which features Gregorian chants and Renaissance polyphony. Unbeknownst to Joe, this was the mass Halley always attended.

So, one Saturday evening a few weeks after their first encounter, Halley and Joe happened to sit in the same section of the church for mass. They recognized each other at once. From that point onward, though the two had not yet met, they were hyperaware of each other’s presence at church each ensuing weekend. And over the course of the summer, Joe found himself thinking about Halley during the week, too. The interest was mutual—Halley found herself wondering when Joe would finally ask her out.

At the end of July, Halley attended mass with her sisters Madison and Anna Clare and her cousin Kameron. Noticing Joe, Madison leaned over to Halley and asked who he was. Halley said she didn’t know. Moments later, Kameron, who had not heard Madison’s question, pointed out “that cute guy” to Halley.

Joe had planned to introduce himself and ask Halley out that very evening after mass. But, deterred by the group, Joe decided to wait for another week when Halley’s full entourage wasn’t present. Time was short, though: Joe was moving to Baton Rouge in just four weeks. But he knew he needed to meet this girl.

On August 6, 2022, Halley got ready for mass and wondered whether today would be the day Joe would approach her. After mass and the organ postlude, Halley left the church. She had just reached the parking lot when she heard, “Excuse me, miss!” With butterflies in her stomach, she turned around and saw Joe. He introduced himself, and the two exchanged pleasantries. Joe then cut to the chase, telling Halley he would like to take her out on a date. Halley accepted the invitation.

Over the next year, dating long-distance, the two fell in love. Joe proposed in front of the Blessed Virgin Mary statue at St. Thomas Aquinas on August 19, 2023, not twenty yards from where he had first asked her out. Once again, Halley said, “Yes!”