M&A

It could have been a typical office romance, but nothing was typical at the time. Though Marissa and Andrew met within the halls of A+E Networks - sitting across from each other at the occasional meeting - it was only after everyone was sent home in the onset of the pandemic that a connection began to grow. As office and societal culture began to change, the pair spent time many hours together building on that change at A+E - albeit virtually. But what started as workplace discussion quickly turned to after hour Zooms getting to know one another. Marissa at her apartment in Harlem and Andrew just across the river in Astoria. By September of 2020, they'd spend time together in person, just the two of them, for the first time. Sitting on the steps of the Met, drawing, laughing, and feeling as if they'd already known each other for a longer time.

New York City had been home. But their story had a future beyond the city neither of them anticipated. The city was the place where Andrew introduced Marissa to her newfound love of Bialys. Where Marissa showed Andrew the magic of a NYC institution in Bemelman's bar. Where the couple bonded over a love of ghost tours, holiday markets, and home improvement projects (somewhere under layers of paint in Andrew's old kitchen there sits Marissa's terra cotta handprint.) But by the summer of 2021 an unexpected opportunity landed in Marissa's lap. A new job, at PBS, in Virginia. For a NYC boy born and raised, having lived nowhere else, Andrew knew it was an opportunity Marissa couldn't pass up. And he also knew in that moment he would go with her. After a year of long distance, many Amtrak rides, and knowing Marissa had to be in the office (luckily just two days a week,) they settled on Silver Spring, Maryland for their first home together.

If you had asked either of them before the move, "would you see yourself ever living in Maryland?" they both likely would have said, "not a chance." But, "the Old Line State" quickly captured their hearts (especially being just a 3 hour Amtrak ride back to NYC). However Andrew knew that when it came time to propose, they'd have to go back to where it all began. With a ring in hand (picked out together in a store situated perfectly between a Cinnabon and a Philly Cheesesteak spot), he knew he'd need a little help to pull off the perfect proposal. It was right after Christmas in NYC. A rainy Saturday and a bit of misdirection to get Marissa to the Upper East Side. As Andrew guided Marissa to the Met, her closest friends gathered at a nearby wine bar. All the while Andrew's sister hid amongst the crowds of tourists outside the Met, waiting to capture the moment. Thankfully for the plan, Marissa's go-with-the-flow personality lended itself perfectly to walking in the complete opposite direction of where Andrew had told her they were going. And with a hollowed out copy of Alice in Wonderland (Marissa's favorite book,) a ring tied neatly within, and a knee in a puddle, he asked Marissa to marry him. Just like Alice, the pair were ready to go down whatever rabbit holes and wild adventures life may bring, together.