Austin & Emma first met when Austin moved to Atwood-Hammond schools in August of 2011. On the first day of school, he didn’t know who his teacher was or where to go after being dropped off. He decided it was best to act like he was tying his shoes the next 15 minutes until the bell rang to avoid any interactions. By the time it rang, Emma had already figured Austin and his shyness out. She grabbed him, and showed him their classroom. Fitting enough, their desks were right next to each other on that first day that they walked into Mrs. Shoemaker’s 5th Grade Classroom. Since then, Emma & Austin have been inevitable. Both were timid towards each other for years but had an undeniable connection. They were always each others closest friend, but always knew there was something more. Their first real date was April 27th, 2022 at WB’s in Charleston, IL. Although, they had many late night ice cream runs prior. Austin asked Emma to be his girlfriend on a scooter ride a couple months later in June. Since then, together they have celebrated life, grieved loss, graduated college, started their careers, bought their first home home, and even adopted their sweet pup, Indy. Austin proposed on September 1st, 2025 at Lake of the Woods in Mahomet, IL. All of this has lead us to now and their forever together.