Rodney and I are two Midwest kids forging our own path in the Pacific Northwest, now calling Portland home. Our story began in 2013 on a night out in Cleveland, where a chance meeting led to our first date. Soon after, life took us in different directions—Rodney’s career had him traveling to the West Coast, while Jessica studied abroad in Florence, Italy. For five months, we stayed connected as long-distance pen pals, exchanging emails and long conversations via Skype calls that deepened our bond.

After Jessica returned from abroad, we spent a whirlwind summer and quick winter together in Northeast Ohio while Jess finished her undergraduate degree. At the top of 2016, Rodney had relocated to LA for a new job. Upon Jessica’s first visit, she landed a job interview and moved to LA three weeks later. We built a life together in LA, growing both personally and professionally. Once the pandemic hit in 2020, it rerouted us to San Francisco, Oakland, and eventually back to Ohio.

When the pandemic hit in 2020, it rerouted us to the Bay Area. Jessica had accepted a job offer in Union Square, and at first we imagined commuting back and forth between San Francisco and LA. We tried giving San Francisco a chance after the thick of the pandemic, settling into the Tenderloin. Eventually, we moved across the bridge to downtown Oakland, looking for a different pace of life. Our time there was cut short as we soon realized Northern California wasn’t where we wanted to be. Still, in just shy of two years, the Bay tested and strengthened us. With God’s guidance, we chose each other through distance, uncertainty, and change. That chapter shaped our values as a couple and remains an important piece of our love story.

In 2022, our careers took us to Portland, where we’re laying the foundation for our future—blending ambition, adventure, love, and commitment every step of the way. In this next chapter Jess and Rodney are looking forward to deepening their connection and, God willing, starting a family of their own.