Jake’s POV: Anna Kate is the best thing that has ever happened to me that I never saw coming. It all started when a mutual friend of ours mentioned her name to me at a wedding. I always thought she was cute, but I hesitated to reach out not knowing how she felt about me. A few weeks later, I was mowing a yard and for some reason Anna Kate crossed my mind. I called up my buddy to see if he thought she would be down to get to know me, and shortly after, we started texting and then went on a double date. We were both kind of reserved, but after our second date at the Fair, I knew that I did not want to be without her. I quickly learned to love her magnetic personality. She was a light to everyone she interacted with, and I could tell that when she cared about something, she was passionate about it. After a couple of months, it was clear that we had become inseparable. One thing about Anna Kate is that you are going to have fun with her no matter what. She knows how to lift your spirits and will make you laugh every time. Anna Kate is everything that I have hoped & prayed for & she makes me a better man. She is patient, sacrificial, forgiving, loving, and looks for ways to serve. Her most attractive quality is her relationship with Jesus and her constant pursuit of Him. She is always trying to be the best version of herself, and her work ethic and drive rubs off on everyone she knows. I thank God for her every day, and I cannot wait to spend the rest of my life with her. I couldn’t ask for a better partner. To God Be The Glory! Anna Kate’s POV: Before I met Jake, I was one of the last single ones in my friend group and felt like I was getting set up left and right. At the same time, I was convinced there was nobody anywhere near me that I would ever be compatible with. I had finally decided I was going to wait until I moved out of Ruston to date again when my roommate mentioned the name of a boy she had just bumped into at a wedding. It was the same name another friend had suggested just a few months earlier: Jake Courtney. We had mutual friends throughout high school and college, so I had known of Jake for a while. I had always thought he was cute, and we’d even been neighbors for three years in college. I remember seeing him out in his yard on my walks, but I’d switch to the other side of the road to avoid any potentially awkward small talk. We never really spoke, and I never thought we would date. The first time a friend suggested it, I shrugged it off—but when his name came up again, I decided to consider it. We texted for a while before going on a double date with the couple who set us up. The date went as most first dates do, and I think all four of us were a little nervous. But the next night, Jake and I talked on the phone for hours until early the next morning. We went to the Fair together the day after that, and from that point on, Jake pursued me persistently. He was different from anyone I had met before. He brought flowers, planned our dates, and was clear about his intentions. I was guarded at first, but Jake completely won me over. Once we started seriously dating, it didn’t take long for me to know we would be together forever. Jake is intentional, trustworthy, hard-working, funny, and authentic. He loves the Lord and has stewarded our relationship with Christ at the center. He is unapologetically himself, loyal to the people he loves, and always seems to know the right thing to say when I’m upset. He keeps life fun, and I find myself always wanting to be with him. I also love his family—they have welcomed me as their own from the start. I have truly never met anyone like Jake, and I still can’t believe I’m marrying the same Jake Courtney I spent all those years in proximity to but never speaking to. God’s plan for us coming together is one neither of us saw coming, but one we are eternally grateful for. Now, I cannot imagine life without him, and I cannot wait to spend the rest of my life by his side.