The first time I ever heard Zach's name was in Florida when Angela Brickle (then Douglas), my friend from an FSU bible study, was telling me all about her boyfriend's family. I believe a joke was made along the lines of "well he has an older brother, in case you're interested." But the only information that I really gathered about him was that he was very quiet, and being an introvert myself I didn't think that would be a good match. Fast forward a year and I was about to graduate from Grad School and I was looking for a speech therapy job in South Carolina. I was ready to escape the Florida heat and ready to try something new. I looked into jobs in Greenville and Columbia. While I was job searching, I visited Angela in Columbia. We decided one afternoon to have some coffee, only one problem, she was out of coffee, so we stopped by, Bo's (her boyfriend) house, where Zach was living at the time, to make some coffee. About the time we sat down for coffee, Zach came running through the door, and our conversation went something like this. "Hi", "Hi" and then he left, only confirming what I had been told about him; he was very quiet. Fast forward another year later, Angela and I are catching up on the phone when she mentions that at her and Bo's wedding they had been talking and thought Zach and I would be a good match; and would I like to be set up on a date, to which I nicely declined. I had been set up before, and I still wasn't sure two introverts together would be a good match. A month later and its Angela's birthday and I went early to help set up for the party, and who should also be there but Zach. In the back of my mind I heard Angela's comment run through my head, and I was curious, so I started a conversation and to my surprise he continued the conversation. We ended up talking the whole night from opposites ends of a table and then one day later he asked me out. We went to a river walk and accidentally ended up walking for 5 miles, and the rest is history.

I remember the first day I met Mindy, I was rushing into my brother’s house to pick up some snorkeling gear. It was April 2017 and my brother’s fiancée, now wife, Angela, had her friend Mindy over for coffee. Our extensive conversation was “Hi” and “Hi”. It wasn’t until that next year in January at my brother’s wedding that I saw her in passing as we set up and cleaned up for the occasion. However, Angela had an idea to have us both meet in a more intentional way. In April, my brother had a party for Angela. They both invited me and Mindy. My mother and other sister-in-law hinted that Angela’s friend was going to be there. I really wasn’t keen about going, as I didn’t want to be set up. The day came and I got there early to lend a hand. Mindy was there as well. I don’t remember who said the first word, but we ended up talking most of the party. That next day we went on our first date at a local river walk called Saluda Shoals. We enjoyed our time talking so much that we didn’t realized we had walked 5 miles! And after, well…the rest was history...