Jacob and Emily met at the Forge Catholic young adult group in May of 2023. Emily was on a summer break from graduate school and decided she wanted to start attending more Forge events to have Catholic community and make more Catholic friends - while secretly hoping she would meet that special someone :) Jacob had been attending Forge events for a while and was hopeful that he would meet that special person someday too.

On the evening of May 13th, 2023, the outdoor event wiffleball was cancelled due to rain. Instead, a game night took place at one of the Forge member's homes. Emily walked in and noticed Jacob shortly after she arrived. Jacob also noticed Emily. He thought she was so beautiful that she must already have a boyfriend. However, the two didn't talk much that night.

About a week later on May 22nd, Jacob and Emily's paths crossed again, unbeknownst to either of them. Emily was playing piano for the Catholic Schoolhouse Homeschool Co-Op's Spring Showcase (since her sister Sarah directs the choir and asked her to accompany on piano) and Jacob just so happened to have two younger sisters in the co-op. The two were surprised to see each other there. Jacob approached Emily after supper that evening and struck up a conversation. They exchanged basic information about themselves as well as discussed the importance of spiritual direction. The two enjoyed the conversation and hoped to talk sometime in the future, but did not exchange contact information, nor did they know if and when they would see each other again.

Another week went by, and on June 3, the two met yet again. A summer cookout was being held for the Forge that day, and both Jacob and Emily decided to go. When Emily saw Jacob's car pulling into the parking lot, she decided to park by him. The two walked and talked for a bit before splitting up and talking to other young adults at the cookout. Even though they were having conversations with other people, Jacob and Emily kept thinking about each other. They both kept watching each other out of the corner of their eyes, hoping and praying that the other would not try to talk seriously to another person of the opposite sex. Jacob and Emily felt drawn to one another - they just could not shake the feeling that they needed to talk to one another. There was something different about each other that neither of them had encountered before. At the end of the evening, Emily stuck around to hit the volleyball with a small group of young adults, and Jacob was in that group. She was hoping she would get to talk to Jacob some more. Eventually, she did :) Later that evening, Jacob private messaged her and asked her if she wanted to go on a walk at Washington Park after church the next morning. Without hesitation, Emily said yes! That Sunday after church, June 4th, changed their lives forever. Jacob and Emily started talking and just couldn't stop! They quickly forged a strong friendship and fell in love with each other. They became inseparable best friends from day one.

Over the course of 9 and half months, Jacob and Emily spent lots of time together and prayerfully discerned the direction their relationship should take. Through the intercession of St. Therese the Little Flower, Jacob and Emily felt that the Lord was calling them to marriage. Jacob proposed to Emily on March 30th, 2024 (Holy Saturday/Easter Vigil) and, of course, Emily said yes!

However, an additional period of discernment was needed during engagement to help the couple overcome fears and doubts and freely give their "yes!" to the Lord in marriage. After Emily's profound encounter with God in Adoration and Jacob's fruitful decision-making while in Adoration, it became clear that God was truly calling them to marriage. Jacob and Emily look forward to the blessedness that comes from sharing a life together, and, most importantly, from having God at the center of it all!

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