In 2013, Ena and Bavon both decided to leave their full time careers and embark on the Journey of making an Olympic team for their respective countries. Ena while having much success ran out of time in 2016 and missed the qualifying time by 1 second for USA Olympic trials, she found herself trying to salvage her season and decided to go to an international meet in the Bahamas for a chance to run fast and end her season on a high note. At this same point in the season Bavon found himself centimeters away from jumping the Olympic standard, needing one more meet he also found himself at the same international meet in the Bahamas. It was an amazing moment for all of us being surrounded by other people putting everything on the line. This gave us an instant bond. When we returned to the States we did not reconnect again until months later at Florida Relays in 2017. While this is Ena’s favorite meet she was focused on handling business and channeling her tunnel vision. Bavon recognized and remembered her. Bavon reached out the next day and that started their friendship. Over the course of the next two months they spoke off and on supporting one another through their endeavors of track and field. After a few weeks of exchanging messages, they had their first phone conversation and from that moment on they have spoken pretty much every day. Two years later and a lot of frequent flyer mileage visiting each other, Bavon made the courageous effort to move across the country to Los Angeles to allow their relationship to fruition in person. Through an insane and intense pandemic they worked really hard to better themselves for each other. In August of 2021 Bavon proposed. The proposal was on the heels of a huge promotion for Bavon, which led us having to relocate to NYC.

Tis was a glorious day, just playing. It was a beautiful day though, which was perfect for my plans. Knowing that Ena hates surprises, curious E is what I call her. She will ask so many sesame street type questions that you end up just telling her truth outright. In order to make my proposal plans work, I figured I'd tell an honest lie to orchestrate my surprise. I told Ena earlier in the week that we had fancy lunch plans Saturday August 29th. It happened to line up with her already getting her hair and nails done. Leading up to that Saturday, she became curious again and went into her CSI mode of trying to solve the puzzle. Communication was already in place with Ericia (her sister) to meet us at this “restaurant“. The day finally came and we drove over to our destination. I had Ena blindfolded in our commute and survived the 30 min interrogation along the way. We arrived at the location, in which they were also prepared to assist with the proposal. Guests who were there, played along and remained quiet. Champagne was brought out to set the mood, Ena's still blind folded and her curiosity meter reached new heights. Finally, we walked outside to an open area, me guiding Ena to a preset spot. All the supporting cast (Ericia, photographer) got in position. I then got down on one knee, prompted Ena to remove her blind fold. I proceeded to tell Ena how I felt about our journey, which was followed by “Will you Marry Me” with a Helicopter behind her. She said yes!!. She is filled with joy, surprise and in aww of everything that was going on. To tip it off, I then announced that we are getting on the helicopter for a 30min tour of Los Angeles. Between the proposal and helicopter ride, it was an afternoon of love and excitement.

To ensure the safety of all guests and vendors who are attending our wedding, we are asking everyone to be fully vaccinated before attending the wedding. At the time you RSVP, please email your vaccination card to bavonlovesena@gmail.com.