Gabriel and Kayla first met in college at Oregon State University in 2021. Gabriel was living in the Antioch House, and Kayla was living in the House of Charis next door. There was a Halloween party hosted by the Antioch house, where Kayla walked up to Gabriel to introduce herself. That first encounter was incredibly awkward, and Kayla decided in her mind to avoid him at all costs in the future and pretend like it never happened. Despite their awkward introduction, Gabriel had a feeling they would become good friends. By that winter, they started hanging out with mutual friends and discovered they had a lot in common. They got to know each other as friends by sharing music, climbing trees, and drinking too much boba.

Each spring the House of Charis hosts an event called Garden Party. This is a formal dance where the girls have their roommates select a date for her, and she is surprised the day of with flowers, and a sign displaying her name. Kayla’s roommates all saw how well Gabriel and Kayla got along, and they were excited to choose him as her date! After Garden Party, they realized their feelings for each other and began dating over the summer of 2022.

Gabriel proposed to Kayla on January 5, 2024. After hiking through a coastal forest, they reached the top of Cape Falcon, overlooking a beautiful view of the ocean. Kayla turned around to see Gabriel on his knee, and before he could even finish, she said yes!