Olivia and Wyatt first met as babies. Phil Herman and Doug Rider, their fathers, were assigned to the same dorm and they met in the first week. They became great friends throughout college and after. Once they both married and had their first children, the young families got together, introducing Wyatt and Olivia. The Herman family moved to Northeast Ohio and they did not see each other afterward. Wyatt and Olivia became reacquainted when they were students at Ohio State as part of a leadership team within the ministry. This put them back into closer proximity and gave them a chance to connect over their upcoming decision to work internationally with Cru. Olivia and Wyatt really got to know one another while living in Slovakia and working with Cru. Six young Cru staff moved to Bratislava to join a team there, and they quickly became like a small family. Olivia and Wyatt both volunteered to take on a ministry opportunity with a choir. A local church offered an opportunity to rehearse and perform in an English-speaking Christmas choir that was a big draw to many Slovaks across a wide range of ages who desired to sing and to practice their English. Every Monday night for their first few months in Bratislava, the two of them took a long transit ride across town to the rehearsals. They used it as an opportunity to get to know one another and check in with each other on the process of adjustment and change as the weeks passed. By the time Christmas came, Bratislava Spieva Gospel, and their weekly rides together, were a mutually identified highlight of life in Slovakia. As they continued their life abroad, both each developed an affection for the other. Wyatt found himself drawn to Olivia’s gentleness and sensitivity. She was compassionate, caring, and exceptionally fun. He laughed a lot when he was with her and certainly made her laugh a lot. Olivia was drawn to Wyatt’s intentionality, heart for God, humor, and his compassion as well. Olivia also admired Wyatt’s intensity in that whatever he decided to pursue, he did so wholeheartedly. Olivia realized she had never met anyone like Wyatt and he was one of the best people she had ever met. The two decided that they would be a couple when returning to the United States. After moving back to Columbus in 2024, they embarked on a process of dating to pray and consider their future together. Meticulous thought (those who love them would say it was in excess, to their detriment) and care went into the decision as they continued to build a life together. At the end of 2025, the questioning came to an end, as both came to rest knowing three things: first, that God is both abundantly faithful and good; second, that after any amount of thinking and discernment, a leap of faith to make a choice would remain; third, that neither wanted to pursue the picture of a future life without the other. They were engaged in early 2026 and plan to wed the same summer. They continue to pray, and ask you to pray with them, that God would prepare them well for their marriage before their wedding day and that his daily faithfulness and love would be clear to them every day afterward, that their marriage would illuminate God’s sacrificial love to them and those around them, and that it would be a beautiful opportunity to refine them into the image of their master. They hope that their union will be a force for joy, beauty, and love.