We were acquainted in high school at Pius but really connected through mutual friends in college when Jess moved back to Lincoln for nursing school. We were both members of the ballroom dance company at UNL and were heavily involved in the Newman Center throughout college.

Before our senior year of college we spent the summer working together as lifeguards on a resort in Sea Island, Georgia as part of a program called Summer Projects run by the Fellowship Of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) the organization Lucas now works for. We started dating after that summer and continued dating long distance after graduation while Lucas moved to Emporia, Kansas for work.

We got engaged in May 2024 while Lucas was home for FOCUS summer training and are so excited to get married in June 2025.