It began on April 17, 2016. Laurel was sitting in a pew waiting for the service to start at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in NYC when a man sat down beside her. "Hi. I'm Tim. Is that your book?" he said, pointing to a copy of The Brothers Karamazov peeking out of her purse. And just like that, 700 pages of a Russian aristocratic family's tragic demise ignited the spark of true love. But really, Tim kept looking over at Laurel throughout the sermon. Whenever the pastor made a joke he'd laugh and look to see if she was laughing, too. Conversation after church ensued where they discovered their mutual love of reading (Tim had also brought a book to church). Then Tim asked for her number "so that we can talk about Russian literature some time." She gave it to him. Our first date was one week after our first meeting at The National restaurant on 51st street. There was some talk about Russian literature, of course, and so many more things! We've created so many wonderful memories over the past three years. Laurel has cheered Tim through two Ironman races and multiple other races. Tim has attended Laurel's countless choir concerts at Carnegie Hall. We've seen fireworks at EPCOT and helped with hurricane relief work in Texas. We've hiked 12,000 ft mountains and visited the Valley of the Sun. We've done so many exciting things together, but some of our most cherished moments are the simple things like reading together or going for a run along Connecticut's beautiful roads. Tim proposed last December in Zermatt, Switzerland, at the foot of the mighty Matterhorn. We couldn't be more excited to get married and are so blessed to have many wonderful people who've supported us along the way. The encouragement and advice we've received from you all has helped us build a firm foundation for a flourishing marriage, one dedicated to serving each other and to sharing Christ's love. We can't wait to celebrate with you!!!