Jeff and Claire first met soon after she moved to Santa Barbara in 2017 to start her first job as a working professional at UC Santa Barbara for UCEAP (University of California Education Abroad Program). Jeff was a stressed-out second-year graduate student in economics with his co-pilot, Waffles (lab). Although both were primarily focused on work at the time, it took only a short time for them to match on dating apps. She was a sucker for meeting all the dogs, including Waffles. He was a sucker for someone who didn't make a joke about naming his next dog (golden retriever) chicken or pancakes. He wanted to grab a coffee on the first date, and she already had plans to check out the Santa Barbara Greek food festival. The first date went from the festival to multiple dog walks on the beach. The rest is history :)

Even if you have not spent a ton of time with Claire, there is a decent chance that you know (or have heard about) Claire’s love of sleep. Thanks to jet-lag and roosters, though, Jeff was presented with the once-in-a-lifetime chance to propose at sunrise in Kauai. Although it was not the time he planned on proposing, Jeff snuck the ring in his pocket, took Claire to a spot reminiscent of Santa Barbara, and asked her to marry him. Needless to say, she said yes! We can’t wait to celebrate with all of you!!