HER PERSPECTIVE January 28, 2022 I was in a girl friends dorm in Blazer Hall, getting ready to head to another dorm to hangout with a group of guy friends. I heard loud banging on the door and so I stuck my head out to find out it was our guy friends trying to get the girls to hurry up. I yelled “we will be there in a sec” down the hall at the three of them but little did I know my future husband was in the mix of them! We finally got to their dorm and I quickly noticed this boy in a gray Clemson shirt. I immediately went to my friends to try to find out if anyone knew this mystery man. I was too scared to interact with him right away so I decided to sit on the couch across the way from him. Later that night, the person I was sitting next to spilled a drink under my feet and “Clemson shirt guy” was quick to pull up a chair beside him and offer me a seat. He introduced himself and “Clemson shirt guy” was now Charlie Gannon. My soon to be best friend! We talked for hours that night. His kindness, humor, humility, family orientation, generosity, and loyalty quickly shined through and I knew I wanted him to be in my life forever! We quickly hit it off and began dating March 10, 2022. Fast forward to our four year anniversary celebration on March 7, 2026, Charlie asked me to marry him! The easiest “yes” of my life! I can’t wait to be his wife! HIS PERSPECTIVE We met during my first weeks as a freshman at the University of Kentucky. I had just come off a fall gap semester, and Lexington still felt completely new. Luckily, my close friend from home, helped me find my footing and meet new people. On the night of January 28th, we were hanging out with friends before heading back to Blazer Hall. I was about to walk into Sam’s dorm room when another friend called my name from down the hall. I went to catch up with him, and he invited me to a small hangout with people I didn’t really know. As we walked toward the room, a door suddenly opened beside me. A girl poked her head out and said, “We’ll be there in a sec!” I remember thinking, Who was that? She’s absolutely stunning. Inside the room, I waited definitely more anxiously than I’d like to admit for her to walk in. When she did, I immediately tried to act normal while checking for armpit sweat. She sat across from me, and I couldn’t stop staring at her smile. I didn’t even know her name yet. Then one of her friends spilled a drink, and I finally heard it: “Way to go, Lainey.” Bingo. The floor around her was sticky, so I pulled up a chair and offered it to her. She could’ve brushed me off, but instead she sat down and gave me a chance. The nerves kicked in again when I realized I actually had to talk, but she made it easy. We connected instantly—both being one of five siblings, both having swum competitively growing up, and even discovering that her last name was my brother’s first. We talked for two hours that felt like minutes. When her friends were ready to leave, we walked out together and realized we lived just one floor apart in Jewell Hall. I walked her and her friends back to their room that night, smiling the whole way back to mine. A few weddings, Tyler Childers concerts, and TJ Maxx runs later, that girl from the hallway is now my future wife. And I can’t wait to marry her. The Lord has blessed the two of us in numerous ways throughout our relationship and we can't wait to join in a covenant with him on October 3rd!