After graduating college, Sam and Rachel desired to serve the Lord in a radical way and became missionaries through an organization called FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students). They received degrees at different universities and had never met before, but they both ended up serving the same small Catholic community at the University of Tulsa in Oklahoma. They met in July 2020 and immediately realized they were very different from each other – Rachel was quiet and pretty while Sam had a buzz cut and made too many jokes. But they wouldn’t have dated even if they wanted to, because FOCUS requires that all missionaries fast from dating relationships during their first year on campus. So, Sam and Rachel grew in friendship and learned to support each other as their first year flew by. As their second year rolled around, their friendship grew stronger and their differences became less noticeable. Through mission, team life, and plenty of conversations, Sam and Rachel realized they actually had the two most important things in common: strong faith and a good sense of humor. A year after they met, Sam stopped in Knoxville on his way to his best friend’s wedding. He thought it would be fun to visit his teammate and meet her family for the first time – little did he know they made endless comments about her “boyfriend” and strongly suggested that the two should date. Rachel had to deliver the news that dating is not allowed between FOCUS teammates, so there was no chance it would happen as they entered their second year of mission together. As expected, the semester began and the two continued to serve their students in Tulsa. But, their other two teammates had each developed serious relationships of their own, and Sam and Rachel were left to spend more quality time together while the others were away. They played absurd amounts of chess and tennis, shared laughs over the most insignificant things, and kept each other entertained with random stories over many long drives. On one of those drives in early 2022, Sam realized that his friendship with Rachel was not an ordinary friendship. It struck him that he cherished their interactions deeply and wanted their friendship to grow forever, and it wasn’t long before he asked to pursue her in a relationship (with FOCUS permission). Rachel must have felt the same way as she responded, “You may,” opening the door for the two to begin dating that spring. Sam gave Rachel a pretty ring in August and the rest is history!