David and Jessi met at the University of Louisville during the academic year. They were both biology majors and ended up in both 'Botany' and 'Animal Behavior' together in the same semester. David vividly recalls watching Jessi walk in to Botany class with her service dog in training and being immediately smitten, while Jessi didn't realize David existed until their friend Lauren Thomas baited her with "You have German Shepherds, he had a German Shepherd, it's meant to be!" And it was!

David finally proposed (after 4 years of Jessi asking!) at the beautiful ice castles in New Hampshire. David committed to the 3 hour drive there - they sang together in the car, stopped for coffee, and played road trip games. When they finally got to the castles David took Jessi to one of the highest points - it was lit up beautifully with colorful lights, and there was not a single other soul around. That's when he popped the question, with the phrase "Will you finally marry me?"