In August of 2011. Afton was beginning her final year at the University of Delaware, and coordinating the new After School program at West Park Elementary School. Joe, in his 8th year of teaching, transferred to West Park Elementary School as the new Art Teacher. Joe was given the task of creating displays within the cafeteria, which became an after school project. Afton occupied the cafeteria each day working with her After School Program. It did not take them long to notice each other from across the room. Afton, too shy to ask, recruited a student to ask Mr. Repetti for help drawing a panda shape on a poster board, for an art project she wanted to do with the kids. Joe stopped what he was doing to help Afton, and seized the moment to show off his artistic talent. One year later, Afton became a paraeducator at West Park, and was in the building during the school day. Joe and Afton frequently crossed paths in the small school and noticed fairly quickly that they had much in common. Three years passed as Afton and Joe became closer friends at work, talking about deeper subjects and truly understanding that their relationship was more than just co-workers. At the end of the school year, June 17th, 2016, Joe and Afton began to share their feelings for each other. From that moment on, Joe and Afton have been inseparable. In the first year together, they persevered through difficult challenges: Joe's loss of a close childhood friend, and Afton's medical decline, and transfer to a new school building. Working together through the troubling times, Joe and Afton found strength, support and love within each other. Creating new goals and meeting them with determination. Today, they continue to support each other as Joe recently achieved his Graduate Degree in Teaching and Learning, while Afton has become a classroom teacher and continues to pursue her Master's Degree in Special Education. Together, they move forward with love, respect, and happiness.