Taylor and Carter’s story began in Florence, Italy, during the spring 2019 semester of their junior year. Taylor was studying abroad from Penn State and Carter from Syracuse, and with only a few weeks left in the semester, their paths crossed through mutual friends. When it came time to leave Florence, they carried home little more than memories of a few shared moments and each other’s phone numbers. After returning home (to different states), they stayed casually in touch over the summer. Then one night, Carter called Taylor and admitted that he really wanted to see her again. Taylor mentioned that her family would be spending a few weeks at the beach in Stone Harbor, New Jersey, and invited him to visit, and Carter did not hesitate. The following weekend, he showed up, met Taylor’s entire family, and even won over the toughest critic of all (the family dog, Sadie). That weekend, they went on their first official date at Uncle Bill’s Pancake House and quickly realized this was something worth pursuing. From there, distance became part of their story. They spent months traveling back and forth between Taylor’s hometown of Radnor, Pennsylvania, and Carter’s hometown of Potomac, Maryland. When senior year began, weekends were filled with visits between Penn State and Syracuse. Then, the COVID-19 pandemic hit during the spring of their senior year, and Taylor moved back home to Radnor while Carter returned to Potomac, but the miles never changed how certain they were about each other. After graduating in 2020, Taylor moved to Philadelphia and Carter settled in Washington, D.C., continuing their long-distance relationship. A few years later, in 2023, Carter moved to New York City, and Taylor followed in the summer of 2025, and they finally moved into their first apartment together. What began as a chance meeting in Florence turned into nearly six years of long distance, plenty of train rides, and a relationship that only grew stronger with time. On December 26, 2025, Carter proposed in Palm Beach, Florida. Now they cannot wait to get married in Stone Harbor, a place that has always held a special place in their story since it is where it all truly began!