One fateful summer of 2020, William and Alyssa crossed paths for the first time at the Catawba Island Club. Alyssa was completing her event planning internship while Will and his brother Luke were running food in the restaurant. Though this is where the story officially begins, the two did not do more than say "hello" to each other in passing and there was no summer romance to report back to their respective friends upon returning to different universities in the fall. Alyssa and William's relationship, if there were any at the time, laid dormant for the following years, the only connection between the two being passive following of each other on social media. Years went by, Alyssa completed her Bachelor's in Applied Communications at Kent State University, William completed his nursing degree at Baldwin Wallace University, both starting their careers in the working world. One fall afternoon, William found himself mindlessly scrolling Instagram when he came across a picture that would change his life. Suddenly the scrolling was no longer mindless, he sat forward in his chair, remembering and re-noticing the beautiful smile of Alyssa that he had not seen in over 3 years. Feeling inspired, William knew immediately that he wanted to ask Alyssa on a date and the rest is history! Alyssa and William connected on their shared interest in playing the piano, music, the movie La La Land, their strong connection with family, faith, and dogs of course! Some of their favorite moments over the last two and a half years include running the Cleveland Half-Marathon and Falmouth Road Race together, dog sitting for friends and family, going to Aruba, attending concerts, and, of course, growing in love together! The pair have been excitedly planning their wedding together and are anxiously counting down the days until the big day!

The day was Friday, June 20, 2025, when Will and Alyssa had plans to go to Will's grandparents house for dinner, because both of Will's siblings were in town for the weekend. Alyssa was very excited for a fun weekend at the lake with Will and his family, not knowing the reason for Luke and Claire's visit to town was the big surprise engagement! Alyssa had gotten off work an hour early and Will told her to meet at his grandparents house before they headed to downtown Sandusky for dinner. After getting ready and, much to Will's chagrin, three outfit changes, Alyssa was ready for dinner and headed down to the beach to greet Will's brother. Luke and Will had a plan to get her down to the beach to take a casual stroll that eventually turned into the proposal that Luke was able to capture on video! Will got down on one knee and proposed on the beautiful beach and, of course, she said "yes!". As if the engagement wasn't a surprise enough, Will and Alyssa's families and close friends were waiting for the happy couple to come back from the beach to surprise Alyssa and spend the rest of the evening in celebration together! In the words of Alyssa, it was the most perfect night, and the best way to kick off their next 14 months of being engaged until the wedding day!

Please see the Q & A tab for more details on our dress code.

Please RSVP by Friday, June 26, 2026.