Our story began at the Vision and Beyond Summer Camp when we both were in the fifth grade. It wasn’t until our first year in high school at Northwestern High that our paths crossed again. Both of us enjoyed contributing to the music and pep of the school’s marching band. Chris played the tuba while I was a flag-girl. That first day of band camp was hot and rainy. I saw that quite a few girls were crushing on Chris, which is when I decided not to pursue him. But then, Algebra II happened, and I needed help. Chris offered to tutor me in the mornings before class. It was during those mornings before school with him helping me that friendship grew. Unfortunately, Algebra II ended. I wanted to keep in touch with him, so I asked for help in Geography even though my grades were excellent in that class. Weeks later, Chris asked me to be his girlfriend in front of our gym class after the school bell rang. The rest is history…

Mercedes and I dated consistently from 2012 to 2018. Six years together from the time we were marching in band and racing on the track team along to college, where we lived five hours away from each other. During high school, we were together all the time—we took AP classes and spent the majority of our time with each other. Graduation came along, and I was headed to Johnson City, Tennessee to get my undergraduate degree in Construction Engineering and pursue my dreams of a football career. Mercedes moved to Charleston, South to attend The College of Charleston to work towards her goal of studying Athletic Training. Across those five hours of distance, we stayed close through FaceTime, devotionals, and prayers together as well as road trips here and there so we could be close. If there’s one thing I’ve learned the past six years, it’s that when you’ve found your true love, it stays with you through the hard times and the good times, the five-hour road trips and the instantaneous phone calls. Our passion is everywhere even when we are nowhere near each other. We look forward to beginning our life together and continuing our love story. God bless!