May 9, 2026

Mike and Kathleen met the old fashioned way, in a bar. They were both at Mission Navy Yard (DC friends, don't judge, we've all had a Mission phase). He noticed her across the room, surrounded by a group of girlfriends, with zero room for him to casually walk up and strike up a conversation. As an engineer, he was used to creative problem solving, so he decided to create a distraction. He ordered a plate of Mission's famous nachos to Kathleen's table hoping to distract her friends so he could swoop in and get her number. Believe it or not, the group of tipsy girls immediately pounced on the free food, no questions asked, and Mike was able to execute his plan. A year later (or maybe a little less, who's counting), they moved in together and started merging their lives, friend groups, and Mike's cat t-shirt collection. Countless boat days, themed parties with friends, visits to the White House, scooters along the National Mall, and meals at their favorite restaurants (shoutout Chloe, Seoul Spice, and DCG), they decided to close their DC chapter and move across the country to Los Angeles, CA. Mike had an opportunity to move through his work with Space Force and he convinced Kathleen to make the cross country trek to his old stomping grounds of Hermosa Beach - a charming little beach town outside of the Hollywood hustle and bustle. They naively declined the military movers and decided to move themselves, driving a giant moving truck with Kathleen's car towed on the back. It's safe to say that after that trip they knew they could survive anything as a couple. Now they live a block from the beach in a historic 1920s house converted into apartments. They adopted two adorably feisty black cats named Tom (Tomato) and Gus (Asparagus). They spend their days taking their cats to the beach, enjoying their local wine club membership, running all over LA chasing facebook marketplace deals, and hosting game nights with neighbors and friends. And sitting in traffic (they live in LA, let's keep it real). Mike surprised Kathleen with a Valentine's trip to the Baja California region of Mexico in February 2025 where he proposed overlooking their favorite place, the water. Now they can't wait to tie the knot in Charleston and celebrate this milestone aboard the Carolina Girl Yacht with their closest family and friends.