RJ and Alex have always known they shared values and life experiences. They met in a fanatic, silly, flirty, incredibly meaningful group that centered just those things. So when they met up for the first time in San Francisco, it’s probably not too much of a surprise that they walked the city together for eight hours on the first night. Alex had a sneaking suspicion this wasn’t going to end in friendship, but that realization came later for RJ. Several months after forming a deep friendship, the two started dating, expecting a lengthy long-distance relationship. When the world changed overnight during a pandemic, Alex suddenly found herself living in Michigan with RJ and his three young children. By the end of the year, they knew they wanted to be a family. RJ proposed to Alex through an elaborate scavenger hunt on Christmas Day. The two eloped in John Muir Woods just north of San Francisco on May 3, 2021 and look forward to a belated reception with their friends and family.