Jacob and I (Annie) met on the 8th of July in 2023. It was a really busy Saturday at the Speckled Hen where I work and I was on my feet non-stop that day. When I had gotten ready earlier that morning, I put on my five points of Calvinism tulip t-shirt. While I was in the back to catch my breath, my coworker came in and said “someone is here to see you”. I had no idea who it could be and I was intrigued. I went out and there was this man (who I did not know) standing at the register. He was smiling at me. I asked him if I could help him and he said he liked my t-shirt and wanted to know where I got it. This led into a conversation about what we believed, basic information about who we were and allowed me to invite him to my church to visit while he and his family were in town. Jacob and his family had travelled from Beaver Falls to see Sight and Sound. I thought maybe he would ask for my number, but alas, he did not. The next day I kept an eye out for him at church, and there was no Jacob in sight.

Several months go by and it is November! I open Facebook and a Jacob Vander Plaats has sent me a message and a friend request. I knew he looked familiar and when I started reading the message I knew! It was my friend Jacob I had met this past summer! As it happened, we had several friends in common on Facebook and the algorithm put us together. God's providence put us back in each other's paths. We got talking more and more, which led to more and more Facetime calls and phone calls. Eventually it got to the point where we were barely going a day without talking with each other and our friendship continued to grow. We officially started dating on the 27th of December 2023. Jacob and I finally began to take turns visiting one another in January. We met in the Lancaster, or the Pittsburg area, or we would meet half way at my parent’s home in State College. Through many faithful conversations the Lord has continued to bring us closer together and strengthen our relationship.

On June 13th Jacob took me on a beautiful hike to the Cliffs at Beaver Falls. When we got to the overlook with an amazing view and Jacob wanted to take our picture with his drone. “Ok, this is a good idea, we don’t have a lot of great photos” I thought. I had no idea he was going to propose to me! He completely surprised me and I have never been happier to be surprised in my life. We are so excited to be married and to merge our lives together! We are also excited to celebrate with you all and are so thankful for the ways each one have you have been a part of our lives. We will be living somewhere close to beaver falls after we are married to start our life together!