Hannah moved to Pullman to attend Washington State University in the fall of 2008. Three years later, Jacob also moved to Pullman to start school at Washington State. On his first Sunday in Pullman, he went out to eat with a few guys whom he had just met at church. The group at the restaurant grew and that is where he and Hannah first met. For several years, they were just acquaintances attending the same church.

In the fall of 2018, Jacob was praying about pursuing a relationship with Hannah. Hannah was noticing that Jacob was starting up conversations with her after church but soon convinced herself that it didn't mean anything. Then to her surprise, Jacob asked her out to coffee while the college group was decorating the church for Christmas. She said yes.

On this Saturday afternoon, Jacob picked Hannah up for a surprise date. Throughout the course of the date, they visited various meaningful places in their relationship. They got coffee at Daily Grind, where they had their first date. They had dinner at Southfork, where they first went on a dinner date together. They stopped by the bench where Jacob first told Hannah that he loved her. They walked on the Lewiston Trail, where they had walked at least once every month for the last year. The whole time, Jacob was praying for the rain to end in time for the final stop. The final destination was Granite Point Rock on the Snake River, where the rain had stopped and the sun came out just in time. Granite Point was where they had first held hands and is a favorite spot for the two of them. Before they arrived, some of Jacob's close friends had set out candles, roses, blankets, Martinelli's, and Hannah's favorite dessert near the top of the rock. Jacob led Hannah to the top of the rock where they enjoyed dessert while watching the sun set over the river canyon. As the sun was setting, Jacob got down on one knee and asked Hannah to marry him. She said yes.