From Shane: Although Katie and I grew up only 30 minutes apart, our paths never crossed. That is, not until our sophomore year at Dartmouth College. A pair of student athletes, Katie field hockey, and I, ice hockey; we were both biology majors with aspirations of attending medical school. One night, I was leaving Physics Lab in Wilder Hall, when Katie stopped me to ask a question. I told her the answer and left, not realizing I had just met my future wife. Our friendship quickly grew from mere classmates, to close friends; going to her sorority events and playing pong at Heorot, attending each other’s games, and spending countless hours together studying in the library. Our connection at Dartmouth followed us back home, spending time together even on school breaks. Over time, we grew even closer, and before long, many of our friends insisted we belonged together. Senior year, I had knee surgery and Katie was by my side through it all. Through my recovery, our friendship continued to strengthen and it was then that I realized how important she was to me. Spring of that year, the Covid pandemic sent us home but fortunately, we remained close. We spent our quarantine days together; studying by her parent’s pool and going for hikes. Katie was studying for her upcoming MCAT exam and I was deciding on graduate school, and where I would continue my hockey career. That summer, on the day of Katie’s exam, I picked her up and drove her home, where her friends were waiting to celebrate. On this day, I finally professed my true feelings about Katie to her sister, Abby. Of course, by the next morning, Katie knew everything I had said. She denied any reciprocated feelings, insisting that we were just best friends. Even so, I took a chance and invited Katie to our family beach trip. Hesitantly, she eventually agreed. During this trip, Katie finally confessed to my sister Kira that she also had feelings for me and the rest is history. On August 1, 2020, Katie and I went on our first date together at THEA in Mechanicsburg. Our relationship started out long-distance with me at RPI, playing hockey and earning my MBA while Katie worked an internship before starting medical school. From Katie: Starting a new relationship long-distance was a difficult adjustment. However, I knew I loved him and that he was my person, so whatever the situation, it was worth it. Shane celebrated with me when my dream of staying in Hershey to get my MD at Penn State College of Medicine, became a reality. We celebrated again when he got the opportunity to live out his dreams after signing with the Reading Royals, just an hour away. I felt so blessed that we both get to pursue our passions while supporting each other from just a little distance away. Summers were spent going to the beach with his family, the lake with mine, and all kinds of adventures in between. My family had already grown to love Shane, to the point where they threatened keeping him over me. Fortunately I knew he would be in my life forever. Since then, we settled into this phase of our lives, me grinding through medical school and Shane pursuing his hockey career. It’s had its ups and downs, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. From both of us: Our love grew stronger over time and summer 2022 brought the Spanos family trip to Greece. This was our first big trip together and we both knew we found our person for life. It was incredible falling even more in love while exploring and learning about Katie’s family’s roots. Fast forward a year to the summer of 2023, when talks of rings and weddings became everyday conversation. Shane knew it was time, and on August 26, 2023 at Longwood Gardens, we got engaged. It was the happiest day of our lives together. The following day we celebrated with our families and commenced the planning process for the big day. We cannot wait to get married and celebrate the beginning of our life together with you all.