On a fateful night in Wilmington, Friday September 27th, 2019, Bryan rallied his newly made work friends for a bar crawl in downtown Wilmington while Sydney and Hannah prepared to go to their friend's bridal shower, neither one of them knowing where the night would lead. After an early conclusion of the baby shower, Sydney and Hannah decided to hit the town, leading them to the roof top of Reel Cafe. Coincidentally, this was the last stop on Bryan's bar crawl, and Sydney and Hannah emerged on to the rooftop to encounter a passionately dancing Bryan with 'What I Like' by Bruno Mars playing over the speakers. One of Bryan's friends noticed Bryan had drawn the attention of the pretty girls in the corner and insisted (despite Bryan's objections) that they go talk to them. Bryan and Sydney quickly found they had quite a few things in common. Volleyball, beach going, and the fact that Bryan was wearing a heart monitor and Sydney worked in cardiac rehab! The rest of the group meandered around, leaving Bryan and Sydney continuing to talk late in to the night... The next day, Bryan texted Sydney first thing in the morning and the couple made plans to go to the beach on Sunday. From there, the rest is history!

In June of 2021, one and a half years in to their relationship, Bryan and Sydney set out on a 10 day trip to make the Las Vegas, Grand Canyon, Zion, Bryce Canyon loop. When they arrived at Zion, they found the conditions less than ideal, with temperatures surging to around 115 degrees every day, the main river being contaminated by cyanobacteria preventing it's use as a water source, and the park packed to the rafters with record attendance. Through many logistical twists and turns, Bryan and Sydney managed to find pleasant enough trails to hike and sites to camp at, but due to a recent pedicure as part of a surprise birthday party distraction, Sydney's feet quickly became riddled with blisters. In the midst of all this turmoil, Sydney still agreed to carrying all of their backpacking gear, along with 4 gallons of water on an 8 mile trail to the east rim of Zion Canyon. After a painful day of trekking, the couple arrived at their campsite and took in the breathtaking view of the canyon, as Sydney loosened her pack preparing to relax, Bryan set up his camera for the vlog, then took the opportunity to reward Sydney for her persistence with a nice shiny diamond ring and a question she had been hoping to hear. Watch the whole thing unfold in the vlog that Bryan put together! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGWnkhgtsTk&t=16s