Montse and Jarek's love story begins where every love story does -- a Multimedia Journalism and Mass Communication class in Old Main. The year was 2015. She, an intelligent, hard-working, sophisticated go-getter and he, walking into class 5 minutes late with a half-eaten chicken sandwich in one hand and a blue Gatorade he obviously spilled on his khakis in the other.

Let's fast forward to 2018 where Montse and Jarek are Seniors at Augustana College. They still attend class together regularly, but now their bond has become even stronger: they are sisters. Having joined the same sorority, the two find themselves spending more and more time together. Between journalism classes and sorority events, many moments of small but meaningful interactions started weaving a web that would soon blossom into much more: last-second roommates.

As graduation came closer and closer, Montse was ready to find a place to live in the Quad Cities. She asks Jarek if he wants to be roommates, but he tells her he already has a commitment. So, she prepares to lease a one-bedroom apartment for herself. Moments before signing it, Jarek bursts into the library, finds her table, and asks if the offer stands. She says "barely," but the two then begin looking at apartments together and eventually find what would be their first home in Davenport.

At this point, both are working in local news. They see each other on scene, host parties to bring their two competing newsrooms together, and take over the air waves in the Quad Cities. But it's not before long that the pandemic locks the two of them in their quaint two-bedroom apartment with only each other as company. This, this my friends, is where their love truly starts to grow. From late night conversations, to binge watching reality TV, and pranking each other, a deep connection forms. Before long, they realize they're more than peers, they're more than classmates, they're more than sisters, and they're more than roommates: they're meant to be.

Now dating, Montse and Jarek slowly but surely start to fall in love and it wasn't long before they decided to move together to Milwaukee. Ah, the Cream City. A place full of beer, cheese, and beer cheese. Together they find their favorite restaurants, go to sporting events and concerts, and fight for street parking.

Then, in the summer of 2023, an engagement officially solidifies something that would have absolutely baffled both of them in 2015 -- they're going to spend the rest of their lives together.

We're so happy you'll be joining us on October 26, 2024 to celebrate this special occasion. If you want to hear their love story without Jarek's attempts at humor, feel free to ask Montse.