From the Perspective of the Bride: It's a wonder that Luke and I met at all to be honest. He moved to my hometown in August of 2020...which happened to be the same year and month I moved from Creston to Ankeny. We also went to the same church and Mass whenever I was back home...but he sat front left and I sat back right so we never spoke to each other.

I didn't actually say hello to him until 2 years later, when my youngest sister Bridget kept telling me how she wanted to set me up with the guy who worked at Rieman Music and volunteered with the high school marching band. I was determined to prove to Bridget that I didn't need her interfering in my love life, and that I could make friends without her help.

I introduced myself to Luke at Clarinda Band Days in 2022. He was there to help the Creston High School Band, and I was there to support my sister on her final Clarinda competition. I was surprised to see someone my age at the competition, and even more surprised that he was so easy to talk to.

From there, we would call each other about once a week, and I would see him on weekends when I came home for Bridget's senior performances (there were many). There's not a lot to do in Creston, so we found ourselves going on a lot of walks and getting to know each other through various conversations. We finally made our relationship official in December of that year.

The next year, Luke was with me for several milestones. Whether it was celebrating friends marriages, the announcement of my nephew, loss of loved ones, or career discernment, Luke was there through every one of those lows and highs. We both realized we wanted to keep going through the milestones and miniscule moments together, had our first conversations about marriage in January of 2024.

Our proposal was far from romantic, which is honestly how I liked it. He called to tell me that he had gotten my parents blessing in February, as I was filling my car with gas. I like to joke that he proposed to me in the gas station parking lot. I was a little spacey and overly excited for the actual proposal the next week, when the ring officially came in. The jeweler asked me to try on the ring to see if it fit. Knowing it was paid for already, I walked out of the store with the ring on my finger. I didn't realize Luke had wanted to officially propose until halfway through our walk back to the car. However, since it was winter, it was too cold to do it outside. Once in my car, Luke officially asked me to be his wife in the parking lot of the Barnes & Noble. I said yes and like to joke I have 2 parking lot proposals.

I thank God every day that I met Luke, and that he loves me. He is one of the kindest souls I have ever met, makes me laugh, and is someone I can share all of myself with unabashedly. I know it sounds cliche, but I'm so excited to marry my best friend and start this new chapter of our lives together

-RaeAnne