It was September 13th, 2020. The world was enduring a challenging stretch during the height of the Coronavirus pandemic. It seemed as though all hope of love was lost. But fear not, for amidst the chaos, a love story was about to unfold.

Enter Jimmy Bliss, a Chicago native and die-hard Chicago Bears fan who found solace in the fact that on this same day, it happened to be opening week of the 2020 NFL season.

Having recently relocated from Los Angeles to Denver, Jimmy's heart remained loyal to his beloved Bears. Living just a mile away from Hayter's & Co, the local Bears bar in the Lodo neighborhood of Denver, he scooted over, donned in his iconic Mike Ditka outfit (Hall of Fame coach of the Bears 1985 SuperBowl championship team).

As COVID mandates required social distancing in all food & drink venues, capacity was limited. Fortunately, Jimmy had secured his reservation, which was required by Hayter's for Bears games at that time.

The lady working at the door appreciated Jimmy's commitment to dress up as Mike Ditka. And Jimmy quipped back to her, "I fully expect to meet my future wife here. I imagine she'll be a fellow Bears fan too". Little did he know, ONE of those things would turn out to be true.

The Bears threw 3 touchdowns in the 4th quarter to orchestrate a thrilling comeback against their division rival Detroit Lions, so Jimmy was in good spirits. After the game had concluded, most of the patrons left, but he lingered around for another half hour to finish his drink and take photos with other fans who admired his Ditka getup.

Enter Kelsey Hayes, originally from Arizona, she has been residing in Denver with her family since the early 2000s.

Kelsey and her four friends walked into Hayter's for a "Sunday Funday" and grabbed a booth nearby Jimmy's table.

"Those girls are rather attractive", Jimmy mused. So in a bold, spontaneous, and potentially embarrassing move, he danced his way over to them to get their attention, prompting cheers from Kelsey's friend Cara (who would later become her maid of honor) "Get it! Get it!"

Jimmy chuckled, but had no more than a few words to say and the interaction was brief. No one thought much of it at the time, but fate would intervene later on.

Fast forward to October 11th, 2020, when Jimmy received a match on the dating app, Hinge, from none other than Kelsey. Jimmy was in disbelief of how good looking she was as he thought she was way out of his league. He hadn't realized, though, that she was one of the girls he interacted with a few weeks ago.

"I thought I recognized you", Kelsey messaged.

Because as it turns out, Kelsey had recorded a video on her phone of Jimmy's antics from the weeks prior.

"Were you at Hayter's recently? Because I have a video of you on my phone from a few weeks ago", she said.

It is important to note that one of Jimmy's photo's on his Hinge profile was him wearing the same Mike Ditka outfit, so he was easily recognizable.

Since media files can't be sent through Hinge, in a clever tactic to get Kelsey's number, Jimmy replied with "Well I need to give you my number because you gotta send me this video so I can see it". Based on that fact, needless to say, it did not take long to get in the DMs.

From that moment on, one date turned into two, into three, and the rest, as they say, is history.

—January 1st, 2021: Officially becoming a couple on New Year's Day.

—October 2021: Taking the leap and moving in together.

—February 2022: Embarking on the adventure of homeownership.

—July 2023: During a boat day with friends, Jimmy proposed to Kelsey on Cherry Creek Reservoir.

Now, in the year 2024, they prepare to embark on the greatest milestone of all—marriage. Their wedding date is set for December 30th, and so the next chapter begins...

Join us as we celebrate love, laughter, and happily ever after in the marriage capital of the world: Las Vegas! We can't wait to share this special day with all of you!