We met at Messiah College, but didn't have our first date until after graduation (and COVID). I invited Mike to Roburrito's in East York after he got off work. I was 15 mins early and he was 30 mins late, but that didn't make me any less excited. We sat and we chatted about anything and everything until they closed and we were asked to leave. We didn't want the date to end, so we drove around York and I showed Mike all of my favorite spots. At the end of our date, he changed the name of my iPhone to "🤤🍍" and it is still that to this day. We made plans for date #2 literally the next day, and date #3 the following day, and have been dating ever since. - Brooke

Early in the summer of 2023, we went mini golfing regularly on Wednesdays because it was half off and sometime in May when we were on our way to mini golf we missed a turn and drove right past Samuel S. Lewis state park, a scenic park that our photographer friend Austin loves to take pictures at. It was the perfect decoy so Brooke wouldn't know how and when the proposal was happening. I texted Brooke's best friends Kayla and Tara and told them I had the perfect plan and explained. I also didn't want Brooke to know about the plan, so I changed my phone password. I got Tara to handle the pictures/candles and got Kayla to handle the flowers. I texted Austin and asked him to take photos and capture the moment. I got the intern Gavin to "invite us to mini golf" that day, but he was in on it too. The morning of Brooke found my phone in the bathroom unattended and started putting passwords into my phone, because she thought it was gonna be the day that it happened. She put in 0825 because that was Friday and she really thought it was gonna be Friday, but was denied. Then she put in today's date 0823 and it unlocked. She re-locked the phone, ran out of the bathroom and exclaimed "All signs point to today!" To both of our surprise, I changed my phone password to the last 4 digits of our old family house phone number, 0823. It was another one of those "God moments" that we had. I took a half day from work that day so I could get my hair cut and set up everything before the proposal. I drove down to the park to make sure everything was clear from the clearing, and Tara and Kayla brought all of the things and help set up and see what everything will really look like and where everyone would be placed. The weather forecast for the day was saying it was supposed to rain at the time of the proposal, and Kayla and Tara were wondering if we should switch to plan B if it rains, but I said "keep the faith" and we stuck with the original plan and to be prepared to move things out of the rain if it did. I left to collect Brooke, the photographer Austin and his now wife Katie arrived, and my sister Christina and Brooke's brother Gavin arrived. On our way there I "miss" the turn and we end up driving right to the park. I say I want to take a little stroll and turn into the park. Brooke mutters in a tautning voice under her breath, "and you said it wasn't happening today." We park and we walk to a clearing in the woods where there are candles, hydrangeas, and big pictures of us on easels. We walk in front of the easels and I am speechless and sobbing at this point. I had a speech ready, but the only words I could muster is "I love you Brooke, will you marry me?" and dropped to one knee. She said "of course", we cried for what seems like forever, and then our friends and siblings emerged from their hiding places to congratulate us. Then the sun broke through the clouds and golden hour was upon us, another "God moment". We had a short engagement photo shoot and debriefed the day with everyone at a celebratory dinner at First Post. -Mike