Tori and Justin met as sophomores in college at Michigan Tech University. Justin and his roommates had thrown a party in his apartment, and that was the first time the two met each other. It wasn't until three years later when the two of them started dating. Tori had already graduated from Michigan Tech and was working full-time in Houghton, and Justin was still in school getting his degree in mechanical engineering.

Tori and Justin decided to travel to California to visit one of Justin's brothers, Tyler, for their five-year anniversary. It was also Tori's first time to California. They decided to visit Yosemite National Park for a couple days as one of their excursions. Justin proposed to Tori at Taft Point in Yosemite on October 20, 2019.