Michigan State University! Alison came over from Wisconsin to start a master's degree in Student Affairs Administration and Dillon wrapped up his time as an AmeriCorps member to start the same program. While they started as friends in the cohort, classmates started to pick up on their noticeable chemistry. It was soon discovered that the assistantship Alison interviewed for and later accepted--which paid her tuition and a stipend--was initially offered to Dillon and he turned it down for a different offer. Dillon had decided their fate long before he knew how important she would become to him. Alison teases him still that he selfishly sat on both offers and he teases her that she almost was an Iowa State Cyclone instead. Spring of 2018, they started spending more time together but then the summer came and Dillon headed up to Houghton, Michigan for an internship at Michigan Tech University. Dillon decided he wasn't interested in spending the entire summer apart, so he invited Alison up to visit, thinking she wouldn't. Alison called his bluff and told her mom she was going to visit a friend with one of their cohort mates so she wouldn't worry about making the eight hour drive alone. The solo trip proved to be worthwhile, as they spent the weekend hiking in Copper Harbor, drinking Michigan beer, and Dillon sneaking downstairs to poop so he didn't have to in a small apartment with Alison on the other side of the wall. A few weeks later, Alison invited Dillon to spend a long weekend with her family in Door County. She told everyone he was "just a friend" but they saw through her immediately. They continued to do things a little out of order--Alison met Dillon's parents at the beginning of August and yet they still claimed to not be dating. Alison was nervous about dating someone in the cohort and Dillon was patient through her worries. On August 18th, while they were enjoying a weekend with friends in Muskegon, MI, Alison decided to take a leap and they officially started dating.

In March of 2023, Dillon decided that he should ask Alison to go ring shopping because he was overwhelmed about picking out a ring without any guidance. They went to a local jeweler and Alison gave him the guardrails he needed to find the perfect ring for her while maintaining an element of surprise. Fast forward six weeks and Alison was on campus for work for a student program. She expected to be home around 8:00pm, but 9:00pm rolled around and she was just getting ready to leave. Meanwhile, Dillon was at home putting the finishing touches on the proposal, thankful for the extra time to make it just right. Alison got home around 9:30pm and immediately changed into a 2XL t-shirt and her Harry Potter pajama shorts. Dillon came down the stairs, told her that he had a present for her, and handed her what looked like a wrapped book. Alison, an avid reader, was excited about a new book and quickly ripped off the wrapping. Inside was one of her favorites, Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton. As she opened it, she realized the pages were stuck together and it opened to the dedication page which read, "For Alison. My favorite genre is us. Let's co-author the rest of our story" with the ring placed in the hollowed out pages of the book. When she looked up, Dillon was on one knee and asked her to marry him. She, of course, squealed and said yes while also making it clear that this was the exception to destroying a book. We cannot wait to have all of our loved ones in the same place next June. We'll see you in one of our favorite places, Door County!