Kailey and Hunter’s story started in 2020. One day, while working her part-time job at Sisyphus Brewery, her coworker/friend, Carolyn, approached Kailey about this guy at her other job who she thought would be a great match for Kailey. She explained that this guy, named Hunter, has the best sense of humor and personality and asked Kailey if she could give him her number. Kailey, unsure about this whole set-up thing, laughed and said “sure… whatever.” Carolyn also gave the spiel to Hunter, and he was happy to take Kailey’s number.

Right around that time, everything shut down for Covid. They texted a little bit here and there, but with everything closed down, setting up a first date wasn’t very feasible, so things sort of fizzled out. When things finally started to open up again, Carolyn and Kailey got together for a drink. Carolyn asked Kailey whatever happened with Hunter. To probably nobody’s surprise, Kailey had forgotten to reply to his last text from a couple weeks prior. Carolyn, still determined to get them together, texted Hunter urging him to try to set up a date now that things were opened up again.

So they set up a date on June 18th at Pryse Brewery, right along the Mississippi River. They sat under a tent outside. Conversation flowed naturally from the start, and they shared many laughs. It started pouring and storming. Not ready to end the date, they went inside for another beer. Then it cleared up. Still not wanting to end their date, they walked along the river and found a spot to sit, overlooking the lit up Grain Belt sign. As Hunter would later quote in his proposal speech, he knew there was something there with Kailey when she slapped his butt when he stood up. Though, Kailey would state that she was just brushing the water off for him. Shortly after that, Kailey and Hunter were inseparable. It was like they had known each other for years. They both knew very quickly that there was something special there.

Since then, Kailey and Hunter have done so much together. They moved into a house together, attended concerts, and added a new kitty to our family. Kailey finally found someone to accompany her on her travel adventures- traveling to Mexico and across the country. Their favorite trip was their backpacking trip to Europe last summer. They traveled across Portugal and Spain with just their backpacks, taking in the cultures, delicious food, bottles of wine, and sites together. They are excited to continue exploring the world together, with another Europe trip planned for the end of this summer.

In June 2022, Hunter asked Kailey if she wanted to grab a beer at Pryse Brewery, where they had their first date two years prior. They decided to walk around the river after, stopping at a little beach near Boom Island Park on a little offshoot of the Mississippi River. They laid out a blanket to sit on. Hunter gave Kailey an Anniversary present. A nice bottle of perfume and a speaker. He told Kailey to turn on the speaker, which he was already connected to. He began playing their favorite love songs. After a couple songs, Kailey stood up and put her feet in the water to cool off. Hunter, trying to get Kailey to look the other way, enthusiastically told her to look at “a hawk in the tree over there!” Kailey didn’t see any hawk and turned around to find Hunter down on his knee. She instantly started crying, and can hardly remember a word he said, but managed to say yes! He had packed a bottle of champagne in his bag, which they popped while celebrating on the beach with their favorite love songs playing in the background.

Since she was a little girl, Kailey had always dreamt of getting married on the beach in Mexico, but knew that she wouldn't be the only person in that decision. To Kailey’s delight, Hunter was 100% on board with the idea. We couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate our love than in paradise with our loved ones, in a city where we have shared some of our best memories

together.