Cori and Linda met in college at Clemson University. Linda knew from the first date that there was a good chance that she had met the "one", but it was Cori who asked her to be his girlfriend. Five years later (two of which were long distance), Linda's prediction appears to have come true. Linda, a native of Massachusetts, moved to SC for college to be near enough to Aiken to compete in the equestrian sport of eventing. Her choice of Clemson, where she majored in business, put her in perfect place to meet her future husband and several of her closest friends. After graduating, she moved to Virginia to take a job, leading to the two years of long distance dating for her and Cori. Cori chose Clemson after growing up in Columbia, SC, clearly knowing how to choose the better school. He initially majored in mechanical engineering, but changed to civil engineering soon after he and Linda began dating. This led to his graduating a couple years after Linda, meaning he was unable to follow her when she moved to Virginia. It was when they moved in together in Charleston that Cori knew he was going to ask Linda to marry him. They were still living in a rental home in North Charleston with their cat Jasper and their dog Arris, both of whom were adopted shortly after COVID hit in 2020 (Cali didn't join the family until after they got engaged). Cori proposed on a trip to Washington D.C. for Linda's 26th birthday, in the Bishop's Garden at the Washington National Cathedral. Linda thought they were meeting to pick him up to go get lunch when much to her surprise, Cori was down on one knee and asking her to share the rest of her life with him. Unsurprisingly, Linda said "Yes" (while wondering who the woman in the trench coat taking pictures of them was - this was April, one of Linda's bridesmaids)