Jason was one of the first people I met at Bradley University. We met at a Bible study on campus and became good friends soon after. We were both in Greek life and were involved in the same campus ministry, so we got to know each other well. We started dating two years later when Jason got back from spending six months studying abroad in the Netherlands.

Jason and I planned to visit Peoria the summer after I graduated for a weekend with friends. Jason planned a whole scavenger hunt around the Peoria area, where we stopped at all of the places that had become special to us throughout our relationship. The scavenger hunt ended at the park where Jason says he had first known he wanted to marry me. He had recruited friends to set up a very special picnic, where he popped the question. He also surprised me with our friends and family afterwards.