(Grant and Sidney's Version)

It all started our freshman year at Davidson College, where we lived in the same dorm (shoutout to the First Belk vibes and Facebook friendship since September of 2015!). We had our one and only college class together that fall (we’ll let you guess which one didn’t want to take classes with the other) so, naturally, we walked to and from the dorm twice a week and a real friendship soon blossomed. Fast forward to that spring, and we went to each other’s formals and had our first breakfast date at the campus coffee shop, where Sidney's aversion to most breakfast foods didn't scare Grant off.

We spent the summer after freshman year writing each other letters while Sidney was at camp, became “official” the first night back sophomore year (yes, Michele, this is when our relationship started), and have been together every moment since. Junior fall we embarked on our respective semesters abroad, and in an early, telling sign for the future of our relationship, confidently decided to do intercontinental long distance, with Grant in Santiago, Chile and Sidney in Athens, Greece. Before going to Athens, Sidney took an incredible trip to visit Grant in Santiago, some of our favorite memories of our relationship are still from that trip 6 (!) years ago.

Skipping ahead again, we both graduated from Davidson (though only one of us had the “good luck” of an owl pooping on us mid ceremony) and set off to start our careers on opposite coasts, with Sidney working as a paralegal in DC and Grant heading to Fresno, CA to work on a congressional campaign. While the distance, combined with demanding first jobs and COVID, was often difficult, we continued to grow closer, cherishing the time we would get together, taking advantage of Grant being in California by planning trips to Sequoia National Park, Monterey, and LA, and starting to really talk seriously about a forever future together.

We were finally reunited on the East Coast and for a few brief months we both lived in DC before Sidney moved to Richmond, VA for law school. Grant was in DC for another year and we both became more familiar than we ever wanted to be with I-95, making the short drive up and down to visit each as frequently as we could. The three years of long distance ended with Grant (finally) moving to Richmond in summer 2022. While we had been excitedly talking about getting a dog together for years, Sidney took “we are getting a dog when Grant moves to Richmond" very literally and we went to the shelter on Grant’s third full day in town, where we met the love of our lives–our four-year-old beagle, Mabel. Anyone that has seen us since then knows that we are slightly (massively) obsessed – so you’re welcome, Grant, for the nudge to go to the shelter ASAP!

That fall of 2022, Grant proposed to Sidney on a beautiful November day walking Mabel in a park overlooking downtown Richmond and the James River. Grant thought through all the details — even wearing a winter vest in the 70 degree weather so he had a place to put the ring. We spent the weekend at amazing restaurants, the Jefferson Hotel, and on overjoyed calls with friends and family.

The engagement started with our first half marathon together the following week and continued with a full marathon this fall. We are enjoying our last year in Richmond and are excited to move back to DC together after Sidney graduates law school in the spring. We’ve loved every minute of being engaged, planning this wedding, envisioning our future as the Koehls (though Sidney is still working on the Grant Fox idea), traveling to many new places together, and have felt so loved and supported by all of our friends and family.

We are so excited for this next chapter and are so grateful that so many people we love will be there to celebrate it with us. We can’t wait to see you in Richmond in March!