Some may say our relationship was ordained many years before we were born, when our fathers, Ray Henning and Dan Hachen, met at Doane College in 1973. The duo hit it off from the beginning, spending their college years together--from the Elementary Education classroom to fraternity gatherings. Their friendship continued as they were married and started families of their own. TJ was lucky enough to be a (very young!) guest at my parent's (Dan & Joyce's) wedding in 1993. Though we lived in different states, our families remained connected. TJ and I have a few memories of family dinners and cup stacking competitions (I know, only a PE teacher’s daughter!!) over the years, although TJ and I had a series of "near misses" in reconnecting in our adult lives. It wasn't until a family get-together in December 2018 that we were reunited--and we hit it off! After months of messaging from afar, we met for a whirlwind week in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. This sealed the deal and we began dating, spending many weekends traveling between Colorado and Nebraska. The next two and a half years of our relationship made for some of the sweetest memories--as distance truly did make the heart grow fonder. I (Katie) moved to Lincoln, Nebraska in June 2021, ending a long season of long distance!

I like to give surprises to Katie, so of course I wanted that for the proposal. She arrived to work at Wax Buffalo on Friday, March 11th, completely unsuspecting. Throughout the day, surprises ensued. Coffee, cookies, flower deliveries...I would later learn that the bouquet of flowers was the tipping point in her thinking something might be up. Katie ended up leaving work early to prepare for the special night, which gave me the perfect opportunity to sneak into Wax Buffalo. With help from her co-workers, I arranged an assortment of lit candles into a heart on the ground, then asking her to return to Wax Buffalo. In a private, candlelit moment, I proposed. We celebrated with champagne before moving the party to a nearby restaurant where immediate family (another surprise!) was waiting to celebrate. A whirlwind weekend ensued, in which we were so grateful to spend time celebrating with family and friends!