We both grew up in Orlando (Hailey in College Park, Nate in the “Far East” a.k.a Eastwood) and went to the University of Florida. Although we talk about the many times we had crossed paths before, we officially met in summer of 2018. Nate was graduated and working at an engineering firm. He was attending First Presbyterian Church of Orlando, where Hailey attended growing up. Hailey returned to First Pres to become an Orlando Fellow, a post-grad discipleship program that started in the fall. We hung out a lot in big groups that summer: Going to movies, walking around Disney Springs, and playing games at Nate’s apartment in Baldwin Park (nicknamed “Mt. Kilimanjarbro”). At the time, Nate was busy being oblivious to girls whatsoever and hanging out with his buddies. Hailey had a crush on Nate right away. She noticed that he was an inviter and connector of people, but did not need to be the center of attention. She liked his humble and kind spirit. Also, he was very funny. When Hailey started the Fellows program she was too busy to crush on Nate anymore, but the friendship continued to grow.

Nate had always appreciated Hailey as a close friend, and had grown to admire her love for others, her love for fun, and her love of the Lord. One day, while Nate was watching “The Parent Trap”, he realized that his good friend Hailey bore a striking resemblance to the actress Natasha Richardson, who plays the mom in the movie. A seemingly silly observation sparked Nate’s crush on Hailey, and he began to develop feelings for her. After consulting his closest friends, he planned to ask her out. During that time, Hailey had finished Fellows and moved into a house of girls in College Park (nicknamed “Maxwell House”). A few weeks later, Nate asked Hailey to go for a walk around Lake Adair and asked her on a date. At this point she wasn’t sure, but by the time they got all the way around the lake, Nate had convinced her it was a good idea. Over the next couple of years, we both experienced seasons of being unsure about the other, afraid of making the jump. We did not “just know” like many people say you do! We grew in love for each other slowly, realizing along the way we could be our weirdest, most raw self with one another and that we loved doing the simple things in life together like running errands, making long drives to visit friends, watching (and analyzing) movies, hanging with family, and playing sports and being active. Through the ups and downs and the life lived in-between, God gave each of us peace and the clarity we needed to take the next step.

Nate told Hailey about a week out that he wanted to take her to dinner Saturday because “his work gave him a gift card”. She was suspicious. While she was out of town for work, Nate was getting the details together, meeting with her parents and buying the ring. Saturday morning Hailey spent time with a good friend. They picked out an outfit and did her hair for “dinner”. Nate called and asked her if they could run an errand on the way, because he needed to drop off a friend’s golf clubs to their house on Lake Killarney. Hailey played along. When they arrived, they walked out to the dock together. Nate did not waste any time. He got down on one knee and and asked Hailey to marry him! She said yes, and their families and some close friends ran out to greet them. Later that night, they celebrated with a party! We are so thankful that God has given us good gifts in each other, and most of all, the good gift of glorifying him in marriage. Thank you for celebrating us and being a part of our story!