Nelly: John and I have been friends for eight years now! It wasn’t until God very clearly opened all of His doors when our paths crossed again in Philadelphia in 2021 that we started dating. We first met at a Catholic conference in Nashville, TN way back in January of 2015. I was attending with my dear friend (now bridesmaid) Steph and we were excited to meet her new boyfriend (now husband!) Geoff, along with his teammates (Thomas, Mark, John, Michael, and Paul). Notably, this was also the conference where I was first given the gift of a real encounter with Jesus, which marked the beginning of my journey converting to the Catholic faith. Looking back, we feel confident that God knew what He was doing by planting both of the seeds of faith and friendship at that time. John: I had my eyes on her from that very first day. Only had to wait 6 years for her to move back to PA... Nelly: Many encounters at Navy soccer games in Annapolis, weekends out in Washington, D.C. with friends, and crossing paths in San Diego over the years kept us connected. John (and the entire Shiiba crew, including Christine and Atsushi, too!) were even (surprisingly so...) at my confirmation when I entered the church at Easter vigil in 2016. Their family and my Mom and Todd, along with multiple of my close friends from D.C. went out to our late-night cookie spot in downtown after mass that night, marking the first time our families met. Again, God always know what he is doing ◡̈ John: Having to go to Easter mass twice that year really paid off in the end. Nelly: It wasn’t until I moved back home to Pennsylvania after four incredible years living on the west coast that we reconnected and realized something had changed. In the space created over those years of friendship, God was doing His work in each of our lives and hearts to prepare us for His timing. Some of our closest friends and family (* cough, cough.... Maria, Kirsten, Maggie... cough, cough*) had certainly been planting seeds in my mind before I left San Diego; (emphatically) “You knooooow, John is in Philadelphia.. you should reach out to him!” Little did I know. John: I picked her up at my Mom’s wake. Thanks for the help, Mom. 😉 Nelly: Seven years of friendship before dating has now turned into a lifetime with my best friend. And I couldn’t be more grateful for this good man! We are also grateful to be celebrating the wedding on the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, because it is from His abundant Goodness that we are receiving this gift of marriage. Nelly & John: We are so thankful for all of our wonderful friends and family who have supported us along the way... raising us to be who we are, praying for us in our singleness as we prepared for our Vocation, and continue to pray for our relationship and marriage. We are so excited to celebrate this joy with you all so soon!