… Back in spring of 2012… Becca went to visit her brother, also named Nate, at Shell gas station where he worked for some extra cash. Nate Blake also happened to work there during the day. On the weekends, the boys of “club shell” would often have their buddy come give them haircuts in the greasy garage while drinking some after work, or during work, beers. Becca showed up there, and right away noticed Nate B. getting his hair cut. She was only 17, and he didn’t say much. Fast forward a few weeks, Becca and her friend were going off to a Memorial Day weekend bonfire. Nate B. happened to be there, noticed Becca, and said “hey! You’re Nate Crofts little sister!” They talked the rest of the night. That summer their paths kept crossing and they stayed in contact. Nate didn’t know Becca was 17, so they actually fell out of touch while she finished high school. Flash forward to 2015. Becca was 20, and was newly single. She reached out to Nate, and they started talking again. More serious this time. On the early morning hours of Thanksgiving that year, Nate asked Becca to be his official girlfriend. That was November 26, 2015. Becca continued to finish out nursing school, staying over Nates house on weekends, while working as a CNA. She graduated nursing school in 2017 and started working as a nurse. It wasn’t until 2019, when they decided to get a dog. Deuce, the English bulldog, entered Nate and Becca’s lives and Becca finally moved in with Nate… just shy of their fourth anniversary. Through living with upstairs tenants, focusing on home repairs, attending car shows, hosting Memorial Day parade parties, and many more, we stayed the best of friends. But “where’s the ring?” That was everybody’s question throughout our many years of dating. Love is patient, love is kind. Friday, January 19, 2024, marks the most fun day of their whole relationship. Our friends, asked us to get dinner this night. There was a light snow flurry. The day prior, Becca had asked their friends what time she planned to get our sushi dinner. It took six hours for one of them to respond. Come to find out, they had a group chat going to plan the last minute details. “How does 6:30 sound? We want to see the lights in the park before they take them down. Maybe we can take a walk before dinner?” We all stood beneath a brightly lit Christmas display, it sort of felt like a lit up greenhouse. Our friends asked to have their picture taken, then offered to take ours. They snapped our photo, and Nate grabbed Becca’s hand and said “hey wait a sec”, and got down on his knee. His eyes were welled up as he asked, “Will you marry me?” Best. Day. Ever.