We met at a church friend’s birthday party where Kara bounced up to Rich with a friendly hi. He thought she was cute and was interested in her. She thought she was running interference for a friend and not interested in him or any type of romantic relationship.

We became friends in the context of Bible study and group hangouts. When it became evident that we were on different pages, Kara made it clear that she was not interested in a romantic relationship. Thankfully, Rich is very patient. Our friendship continued to grow through prayer group, Bills games, park hangouts, and Duolingo streaks.

COVID affected us all in unique ways, and it definitely helped shape our relationship. We grew closer and the texts and phone calls got longer. Kara was finally willing to admit to herself she was a little interested, but very afraid to risk a friendship. In a very long phone call in the summer of 2021 she communicated that while she was a little interested, she didn't think it was worth the risk.

He respected her wishes and gave her space...Well she realized she didn’t like the space and put in the effort to maintain the friendship while doing a lot of praying and talking with friends. Rich sensed her changing interest and that October asked her out again. She decided to give it a chance.

What followed was Rich’s biggest “I told you so”, as we quickly became comfortable spending time one-on-one and enjoyed being together. It only took a few months for us both to admit we were very in love.

The next three years saw us settling into small moments together with evening dinners, tv shows, walks, Sundays with friends and family, bitmoji texts, good night calls, and all the simple and fun moments in between.

Amongst the small moments there were also bigger ones that brought us even closer: job transitions, buying a house, family weddings, family illness, vacations, etc. Through all these big and small moments, we grew in our communication and dedication to each other.

On November 16, 2024, Rich asked Kara for a walk at Delaware Park. We chatted about house repairs and other ordinary things. We switched to reminiscing about the first time we held hands as Rich walked us to that spot and proposed.

We are so excited to be planning a marriage built on the past six years of friendship and love. We cannot wait to celebrate with you as we start the next chapter in our life together!