we're getting married!

More than a decade ago and innumerable crossed paths, Mat and Sheena’s story started all the way back in college, at Stony Brook University. Mat was on the pre-med track and Sheena was a journalism major. While they never had any classes together, they had a long list of mutual friends – yet only shared a few “hellos” to each other in passing over the course of their four years there. But as their friends say, some invisible string kept tying them together. Sheena’s roommate was a close friend of Mat’s. He shared the story of a rescued turtle on campus not realizing it was Sheena who cared for it in their dorm. Mat would play basketball at the park across from Sheena’s childhood home. Another mutual friend later admitted, “I always thought of setting you two up.” What seemed like too many missed opportunities was just the start of God's plan. After college, Sheena went straight to work for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and Mat was preparing for medical school. But one late summer day, Mat happened to be waiting in line for the show. Another quick greeting shared, but nothing more. Then came residency, breaking news, and a million overnight shifts (for the both of them). Through it all, they somehow came across each other on a dating app but again, it wasn’t quite their time yet. * * Sheena’s sister, Serena, remembers Mat being the one to let that opportunity slip. Mat denies it to this day. Finally in the summer of 2023, that invisible string was ready to pull them together. Scrolling through Instagram, Mat sees Sheena’s name come up as a “suggested friend,” and decides to shoot his shot. Meanwhile, Sheena was having her self-described “best week of her life” in Hawaii celebrating her birthday. Sheena saw Mat’s request on the last day of her trip and pointed the phone to Serena, who convinced her to just accept it. She eventually did, after a few days. A little over a year later, Mat proposed on the same rooftop they shared one of their first dates. Sheena said yes through many laughs, and that – along with God’s perfect timing – led us to this moment here.