Roots & Routes (Katie’s Perspective)

I always showed up to class late on the first day at UC Davis to try and find people in the crowd I could study or be friends with. I walked into a parasitology class, saw Gavin, and thought, yeah I’m marrying that guy.

My five year plan began and I was really looking for someone who wanted to do everything and anything. I needed someone who could keep up with the Flinn lifestyle, wanted to travel, loved the outdoors, had a brain, and would be a good fit for the future farm life I wanted.

Gavin magically checked all my boxes.

We have had tons of adventures since meeting each other. We’ve graduated college together, travelled around the country, collected some entertaining stories along the way, completed a few years of graduate school at VCU, bought a house, and even have our own chickens in the middle of the city in Richmond, VA. We love all the friends we’ve made along the way and are tremendously grateful for their support along with our families.

Nematodes Brought us Together (Gavin’s Perspective)

At UC Davis, we both were Global Disease Biology majors (which was relatively new). We decided take a course on parasites and nematodes (worms) our sophomore year. Wildly enough, this random class on worms is why we are getting married.

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I: The Five-year plan begins

At the beginning of the quarter, Katie looks around and decides to sit next to Travis and I. Something possessed her, I'm sure, but with utmost confidence, Katie approached us and said hi. Travis and I were both dumbfounded because we didn't know whether or not we knew her. In a split, anxious second, I gathered any kind of context clues I could. I didn't have the guts to ask who she was. I spotted a sticker with the same major as me, so I assumed I knew her by that and forgot. I kid you not, Travis and I joked about her not being real, an angel we called her for the first few weeks (I'll let Travis go deeper into this in his speech).

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II: The Weeding Attempt

Katie didn't come across as sensitive, so we pretty much immediately went to test the limits. We didn't really hide anything with Katie. She just didn't back down to our highly pointed and odd jokes. She laughed like she had been our friend for years.

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III: Study Buddies

At UC Davis Katie jumped right into the room that my friends and I always studied at and asked me a ton of questions for a few months during our nematodes class.
I tried to help her with organic chemistry around the same time, but that was a lost cause.

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IV: Mars, Mercury, and Venus Aligned

At the end of the summer, Katie had just returned from Africa, and my fraternity brothers and I were having a big party. I thought it would be an excellent time to have a chill night with Katie because she can kick it. Our night was filled with fascinating and meaningful conversation.

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V: We're Going to Virginia?

We spent roughly two great years together at Davis. Katie hoboed it in the fraternity house out of a suitcase, and we took lots of trips. It was a great time to foster a loving relationship. Katie found out she got into VCU, and I didn't. It didn't matter what I thought; upper management said I was coming, so I was coming.

Virginia ended up being awesome, and the five-year plan is set to be completed!