Kathryn was teaching underpriviledged diabetic kittens how to swim at the local rec center, where John Mark happened to be doing unpaid janitorial work as a result of being indicted for parking in his CEO's preferred parking spot. While John Mark mopped around the pool area, Kathryn slipped on a puddle of water and upturned the basket of kittens which led to all of them falling into the pool. John Mark, having the most swimming experience, dove in to rescue them and had to perform emergency CPR on all the kittens as well as Kathryn, which resulted in love at first consciousness.
Kathryn and her sister attended First Presbyterian's weekly luncheon for young professionals in the summer of 2024. John Mark recognized Kathryn from having attended the annual March for Life downtown with her family. At the time, he expressed hope that she would "come to more Sunday lunches". A few luncheons later (John Mark and Kathryn later realized they'd been RSVP-ing based on the other person's attendance), John Mark politely asked Kathryn out via GroupMe. Kathryn said no. Several weeks later, Kathryn reconsidered and messaged him back, only to find out John Mark was busy at the time. Additional weeks later, after some complicated rearranging of schedules and a serious phone call "interview", they agreed to meet at Kairos to get to know each other. John: Kathryn: I was impressed with John from the start, especially noticing his kind heart and ready smile, which put me at ease when I parked in the delivery-only area on our first date :) He and I shared very similar values, a love of family, a desire to make a difference in our culture and community for the Lord, and intentionality to give our relationship every chance it had to be a long-lasting one. I am so grateful for his commitment to me throughout the highs and lows of the challenges we've faced individually and as a couple. He is firmly committed to the Lord, to integrity, to being a servant, to appreciating and seeking wise counsel, to building relationships with each member of my large family, to leading me gently and with intentionality, and to choosing to love me every day. I am so blessed and grateful the Lord brought us together!!