​In the summer of 2016 Mia decided to attend St. Xenia's Orthodox Camp for the first time. Sitting on a bench waiting for the alleged counselor training to begin, a very Greek looking man walked into the room and sat down right next to her. He introduced himself as "Peter" to which she stated, "that doesn't sound very Greek". He corrected himself and stated his name is Panagiotis. He then asked Mia her nationality, which was Russian. Without skipping a beat he asked her about her opinions of the current president of Russia and a debate lasting for several minutes sparked between the two of them. That evening Panagiotis shared his ice cream sandwich with her and before Mia turned her phone in for the week she texted her sister, "can't wait to tell you about the really cute boy I met today!"

Camp was filled with flirtatious looks and friendly smiles. They both went on their way but Mia could not forget about "the really cute Greek boy" she had met at camp. As the next summer approached, both were very excited to come to camp. This year Mia was a lifeguard which meant she had a little bit more flexibility in her schedule and surprisingly she spent a lot of her free time with group 2, where Pete was a counselor. She even choose to go on the hike with his group which proved to be fruitful because as she was getting off of the bus he yelled to her, "Ya tebya lublu!" (I love you, in Russian). She was taken aback, but could not stop smiling for the rest of the day. Mia wold like to personally thank Pete for carrying her bags to her vehicle at the end of camp that year, after several requests, simply to spend more time with him. The years went on and the two of them would see each other at events during the year. Pete would only attend a handful but Mia would invite him to every single event that she went to, including a trip to the Holy Land planned for October of 2018. Pete was unsure if he would be able to attend but he ended up going. Mia assured him that once they returned from the Holy Land they would be "best friends".

Once in the Holy Land, the two immediately became close and spent a lot of time together. On the third day of the trip, Panagiotis gifted Mia a bracelet. She promptly returned to him because in 2017 he had said, in her presence, that he has most definitely not found his wife yet (at the time this had crushed Mia but she was not willing to give up on her "Greek boy"). Pete was upset that the present was returned and immediately apologized for the words he said (despite the fact that he did not remember saying them) and asked if she would reconsider. She told him that absolutely she would, but only after returning home from the Holy Land. The rest of the trip was filled with a clear spiritual focus, and friendship. Several nights the couple would walk the streets of Jerusalem, drinking fresh pomegranate juice and enjoy each other's company as friends. On November 4th, 2018 they both returned safely from their trip and Pete (with the help of some local friends) planned a trip to a beautiful lake outside of Boston after Liturgy. The two would make an official promise to each other and were officially a couple. The following months were mostly spent traveling back and forth between Maryland and Rochester for feast days, weekend visits, and basically any excuse the two could use to see each other. During this time they grew closer to not only each other but their families as well. Seeing the families embrace their love so warmly really solidified for the both of them that this was meant to be. In April of 2019, Mia got a new job and moved to Maryland. This lead to summer, where they traveled almost every weekend, enjoying time with friends and family. On August 4th, 9 months after that first day in November, again after Liturgy, Mia walked into to front of their home church in Maryland to find her beloved on one knee, holding a rose in one hand and a ring in the other! Together, they are beyond excited to start their journey together as Husband and Wife!!