It all began at Wrigley Mansion, where Sydney had just been hired as a bartender and John was already working. During her first days of training, John was assigned to show her around. Never missing a chance to be charming (and a little flirtatious), he told her, “One day, I might show you where the make out closet is.” From that moment on, Sydney made it her mission to ask at nearly every one of the mansion’s ten closets, “Is this the make out closet?” From day one, their chemistry was obvious. The flirting continued at work, and one evening, as Sydney, John, and their now best friends Joel and Mariah were walking to their cars, the guys mentioned going to grab some whiskey. Sydney jumped in and said, “I love whiskey!” hoping to get invited along. (For the record, she doesn’t actually like whiskey, but it did the trick.) That night was the beginning of spending time together outside of work and everything started to grow from there. Later that year, on New Year’s Eve, surrounded by the chaos of a busy night at the mansion, Sydney and John shared a kiss in one of those very closets they had joked about months before officially as a couple. Fast forward two years, and they were headed to their annual reggae festival in California. What Sydney didn’t know was that this trip would be the start of a whole new chapter. After a six-hour drive to Long Beach, John told her they’d grab dinner somewhere casual. In reality, he had made a reservation at a beautiful oceanfront restaurant a week earlier. As they got ready, John pulled out a full suit. When Sydney asked why, he claimed his shirt had a stain and that the jacket was necessary. Feeling suspicious, she patted the jacket down, not once, but twice, and still missed the ring box tucked safely in the chest pocket. Still unconvinced, she asked him multiple times, “It’s just dinner, right?” At the restaurant, nerves got the best of John. Even though he had a reservation, he told the host they didn’t. Luckily, they were still seated at a perfect patio table with a view of the ocean. After dinner, John asked the waitress to take a photo of them in front of the view. As they stood together, he turned to Sydney and said, “It’s not just dinner,” dropped to one knee, and pulled out the ring. Completely stunned and thrilled, Sydney said yes before he could even get the full question out. Now, we are so excited to share that we’re getting married in beautiful Sedona, Arizona on August 29, 2026. We can’t wait to celebrate this special day with all of you! With love, John & Sydney