Joe: "It was around Halloween in 2014 in Syracuse, NY. I was an introverted sophomore going to one of my first actual house parties on campus, at the 'Marching Band House'. Within the first few minutes after getting there, I saw a girl that I knew from a few of my classes. She was dressed in a Siri costume, and was in the middle of teaching several other party-goers how to dance the Electric Slide (against their will). I was hooked..." Mackenzie: "...So there I was, trying to convince my friends what a good time the Electric Slide was, but I was really just dancing by myself. Then I saw this cute guy that I recognized from Ear Training class walking over. He *definitely* wasn't walking over to dance, but I was hopeful he would know the Electric Slide. Unfortunately, the song ended (just in time if you were to ask him) but we struck up a conversation. Coincidentally, we ended up on the same bus home that night, and the bus driver had to kick Joe off at his stop because he kept lingering as we were giggling and smiling at each other."

By the time summer 2020 rolled around, Joe was on "plan F" for proposing to Mackenzie. The original plan was to go back to Syracuse where he and Mackenzie had first met. The trip was planned for April of 2020, and we all know how that turned out... Long story short, the ring (Joe's Grammy's) was in Massachusetts, and the couple were on the West Coast. Three long months (and multiple contingency plans) later, Joe and Mackenzie made it back East. After quarantining and reuniting with family on the Cape, the stars finally aligned and Joe planned out a romantic sunset beach picnic in Orleans to pop the question. After a gorgeous week with beautiful sunsets, the day came and there was "pea soup" fog. It ended up making for a more cozy and intimate setting, and Covid be damned, 'plan F' made for a beautiful proposal.