Time to Celebrate!

The thread that brought Jackie and Matt together started many, many years ago. Matt's high school friend Lauren worked with Jackie at The Children's Theatre of Cincinnati, and when Matt decided to move into town from Texas, Lauren immediately started plans to have Jackie and Matt meet. Even a month or more before he arrived in Cincinnati, she was dropping hints and facts about Matt to Jackie and vice versa. She had the feeling that they would get along perfectly (spoiler: they did). Jackie and Matt first formally met on their first date (which was slyly set up by Lauren and some friends who claimed they "were busy" and "couldn't go" and "why don't you ask Matt to go with you") on September 27, 2017. The date started in East Walnut Hills at O-pie-o for dinner, and continued at the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park in the Shelterhouse Theatre where they saw the play Mr. Joy by Daniel Beaty. The first of many shows Jackie and Matt would enjoy together.

"I remember every moment from the day of the proposal. The paranoid belief that Jackie would somehow see my car I had parked behind the building, the anxious wait for her to arrive at the Playhouse in the Park, the constant rehearsing of the words I had carefully written out, every minute of it. When the time finally came... She had indeed spotted my car, which promptly tipped off what was about to happen, causing her to thoughtfully wait longer to enter, in case we needed more time to get everything ready. As the music started playing, and her friends and coworkers from Pones began the dance they had so carefully crafted to fit my words to her. All of the words that actually came out were different. But that didn't matter. I told Jackie what she means to me, what she means to everyone who knows her. I told her that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. Then I knelt down to ask the question (promptly felt an explosion of pain in my left knee due to an injury from years before, and quickly did an odd switcharoo to my other knee). Without missing a beat, I then asked Jacqueline to marry me. She said yes. And everything that had failed to go according to plan melted away. We kissed and laughed and celebrated with those around us for a while, and then went to dinner at Taste of Belgium (which is where our second date had been). Wouldn't change a thing. It went perfectly."

Matt and Jackie happily live in the Latonia neighborhood of Covington, KY. They have 3 cats- Persephone (Persey), River Styx, and Calliope (Ope) and 1 dog- Ellie. At home Jackie enjoys spending time gardening both vegetables and flowers, baking, cooking, and playing cozy video games. Matt likes to play computer games, watching sports, and eating Jackie's delicious homemade food. Together they love playing Dungeons & Dragons with their friends, playing board games, going to sports events, and seeing local theatre. Outside of the home, Matt works for Mattress Firm since 2017. Jackie is the Theatre Director at Notre Dame Academy since 2020, plus Director of Education for Pones, House Manager at the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, and even more! Jackie and Matt also enjoy traveling all over the states to visit friends and family, and we wish we could do it more often! Thank you all so much for traveling to see us in Cincinnati for our wedding!