Brooks moved to Naples before the start of 4th grade, and Kate moved to Naples before the start of high school. They went to different high schools in Naples but had many mutual friends. This led them to meeting at a Fourth of July house party prior to the start of their junior year of high school. They immediately hit it off & started dating!

Fast forward two years, & these two are headed off to the University of Florida in Gainesville. They continued to date throughout college while Brooks pursued his degree in business administration on a pre-law track and Kate completed the nursing program.

Kate landed a nurse residency position at a pediatric hospital in Atlanta, a city not too far from their college town. She wanted to give this position a chance since this program was highly regarded. Kate knew Brooks had a desire to attend law school but needed a year to get some work experience while getting his applications ready. With that in mind, they decided to take on the move together! As fate would have it, the law firm Brooks worked at in Naples during college breaks ended up opening a small location in Atlanta right across the street from the apartment complex they decided to live at!

Brooks decided to attend Loyola University of Chicago for law school after both Kate and Brooks had a desire to try out a new city at this point in time and liked what Chicago had to offer. With their two cats, they hit the road and moved to Chicago! Kate continued her pediatric nursing career at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, and Brooks became a full-time law student at Loyola and a part-time law clerk at a local firm.

After an amazing two years in Chicago and nine years as a couple, Brooks asked Kate to marry him in Lincoln Park— a beautiful & special place that anyone who has ever been to Chicago can attest to. Their night ended with Italian food (of course) and the celebration continued into the weekend with a trip to a charming beach town in Michigan!

Brooks will be taking the bar exam at the end of July 2026, and he will receive his results and begin his career after the honeymoon. He will be working as an attorney in medical malpractice at the law firm that he was a clerk for during law school. Kate will continue her job as a pediatric transplant nurse at Luries and see where her career takes her. The two look forward to many more years of health and happiness!