We're so excited to celebrate with you!

We met in college ministry. There was a group of us discussing biblical doctrine and all the volleyball girls started walking in late because they just got out of practice. They walked in one by one each one prettier than the last, finally Lana walked in and I grabbed my roommate at the time and I said, “Who is that girl? She is a beautiful!” He said, “Ya, but she is the coach” to which I replied “And?” He said, “And you would never get her." And I took that personally... I talked to her a little bit that night. A couple of days later we all met in the morning at “See you at the pole.” I made sure to grab her some breakfast, talk to her and pray beside her while holding her hand. Later that evening I direct messaged her on social media for the first time. The rest is history.

To understand our proposal I have to take you back to our first date. We ate at a restaurant in Winfield (Lana wanted to sit beside me in the restaurant and not in front of me… That was foreign to me and I expected people to stare at us). After we finished eating I took Lana to a park in Winfield called “Island park." After walking around for a while we sat down on a bench and started to get to know each other better. I asked her, “What are your goals in this relationship?" I kid you not, without blinking. Lana unhesitatingly said, “Marriage." I think I was so shocked by the straightforwardness I didn’t have time to be taken-aback. As the date concluded that scene never really left my head… So fast forward three years and I have this ring… nervous as can be planning how I wanted to pop the question. I know I wanted to do it at Island park at the bench we first talked about marriage, but how could I talk Lana into going there with a photographer and her not get a little suspicious of what’s going on? Well as God always does He made a way. The way He made this time was Thaís Lindemayer Gomes. Thaís, a great friend to both of us, came down to Kansas to spend a week or two. I asked her if she would be willing to request that we “All take pictures at island park before she leaves.” This worked flawlessly and Lana had no idea that the previous night before “the day” my good friend Brianna Berryman and I drove up to the park and planned a route to walk and take pictures on. Finally we arrived at the moment. As we approached the bench we all took pictures together and then one of just Lana and I. While we were “taking a picture,” Thaís was actually recording. I told Lana to stand up and go look at the pictures to see if they are cute. She got up and when she got far enough way I stood up and got down on one knee. Asking her to marry me shocked her the same way she shocked me on that very bench.