With coffee in hand on a warm fall morning, John and Emily sat in the grass together at a park in north Denver by a beautiful lake. Filled with joy at being alone together, they would later call this their first date, marking the start of their relationship as October 10, 2020. The two had only become familiar with one another a few weeks previous when they had been invited to go hiking with their friends. The day of the hike, the car ride was filled with talk about music. John was excited to introduce his friends to the sounds of Lianne La Havas and was very impressed when Emily bravely shared some of her own recorded songs with everyone. John was struck by just how much Emily laughed at all of his jokes. Her radiant expression and bubbly presence, made a strong impression on him. From then on, the two began to spend a lot of time together. John would visit Emily at the “Queen’s House” where they’d fill their time with singing each other songs on the piano and watching movies. When Emily visited John’s home on Birch Street, they’d hide away in the basement listening to music and sharing their life stories with one another. Their relationship seemed to be so natural almost like they knew each other before they met. The two also saw each other often at church and social events. Their entire community seemed to be interested in the relationship developing between John and the beautiful girl that had just recently moved to town from Dallas. Many questions were asked. Few answers were given. The two were slow at defining their relationship. Eventually Emily’s best friend stepped in and confidentially told Emily to “give him an ultimatum”. This eventually led to John taking Emily to a very special (and expensive) dinner at the Monarch Casino in Black Hawk, CO. He wined and dined her the best he knew how, and before the end of their meal he read Emily a poem he had written her. And with that, the deal was sealed. The DTR (Define The Relationship) was a success, and the two became boyfriend and girlfriend January 9, 2021. However, due to the long standing intrigue of their community and the many foundational and meaningful conversations that had taken place previous to this date, the two agreed to keep their previously stated anniversary date of October 10. The next two years were filled with boundless joy and many tough conversations. The two consistently felt their hearts falling more deeply in love. With each joyous day, and each battle won, the two became increasingly confident that they had found their person. They couldn’t stop spending time with one another because their connection was so strong and undeniable. Nearly a year before their engagement, during a visit to Houston to see Emily’s sister graduate from Texas A&M, John asked Emily’s father to take a walk. With a churning stomach and a certain heart, John asked Emily’s father for his blessing. The conversation was impossible to keep secret. As the men reentered the home where the rest of the Folse family was waiting, John and Emily’s eyes met, and all was known. Roughly 9 months later, the Woodall’s invited John and Emily on a double date to go dancing. This was a perfect cover for John’s secret plan. John drove Emily up to NCAR in Boulder, CO, and invited her to go on a walk in the beautiful woods to see the sunset. Emily soon found herself standing on a little dance floor at the top of a mountain, surrounded by candles and rose petals. There John asked Emily to dance together with him, through the rest of life. As the sun set over the mountains on that evening of February 25, 2023, she said yes.