On a Fall Friday night in Wilmington, NC, Oliver was out for dinner with friends. Two of them were Philadelphia-area natives who kept bringing up a friend of theirs they thought would be perfect for Oliver. When they finally searched Haley on Instagram, her page revealed all the things that were most important to her: spending time with family and friends, her beautiful dog Callie, and her love for the outdoors. The vibrant personality and beauty of this childhood friend 600 miles north was plainly evident. He couldn’t help himself from reaching out and asking one of those storybook romantic questions, pulled verbatim from Jane Austen: who was Haley rooting for in Capital One’s “The Match” pitting Phil Mickelson and Charles Barkley against Steph Curry and Peyton Manning? The fact that Haley even humored Oliver with a response, let alone replied with an impressive awareness of this particular golf match pretty much told Oliver that every glowing word he’d heard about Haley all night was really a staggering understatement. Haley and Oliver met during the height of COVID-19. In comparison to a lot of new couples, the challenges didn’t involve favorite restaurants being closed or other limitations for date night options. Being geographically separated (Haley in Philadelphia, Oliver in Sneads Ferry), traditional date nights weren’t really an option anyway. The challenges did involve a three week-long date with Haley stranded in North Carolina due to a canceled flight and a positive test. It might not be for everyone, but that experience ended up being a foundational moment in Haley and Oliver’s relationship. Haley flew to North Carolina to celebrate Oliver’s graduation from Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command’s Individual Training Course. A noteworthy achievement, it was certainly a cause for celebration. The last month had been spent training in rural South Carolina, where Oliver would sneak away to a port-a-pottie to make late night phone calls to Haley, to make sure she was still coming to visit. Little did Haley know, but limited communication windows would be a theme of their relationship. Whether it was due to Oliver’s military schedule and endless last-second date changes and no cell phone access, Haley’s night school schedule and full-time internship program, plus a deployment to Indonesia, where a 12-hour time difference did its best to interfere. Through all these challenges, however, the strength of their relationship consistently wins out. They stuck to the rule of “no matter what, once a month we will see each other”. This strength comes from shared interests, shared values, and a shared dream of a future together. Thank you so much for joining us on June 3, 2023, for this special day. We are happy and humbled to share our love with you all.