We were set up by Georgia’s cousin Leann Steffensmeier! Back Story: Leann moved to Mankato in 2018 when Tony Steffensmeier decided to open Mankato Motorsports with his father Pat after leaving Snell Motors. At this time, Zach is in his last year of college and was working as an accounting intern at Snell Powersports & Equipment (a division of Snell Motors). When the transition to Mankato Motorsports occurred, Zach was offered a full-time position with the new company. During this transition and the time spent building a new business, Zach, Tony, and Leann got to know one another. Leann began dropping (not so subtle) hints to Zach that she had a single cousin that she thought he would really hit it off with. Zach at this time responded with a smart comment and a very fitting eye roll. Not giving up, Leann started bringing up Zach in conversation with Georgia, telling her how well he took care of this suburban that his grandpa gave him, how tall and good looking he was, and that he had a great work ethic. Georgia said that is all fine but that she would never move to Minnesota because winter is her least favorite season. Fast forward to summer of 2020, Georgia just graduated from college and hadn't been able to line up a job due to Covid related layoffs and uncertainty in the Architecture and Design industry. With extra time on her hands, Leann and Georgia coordinated a two-week trip to Mankato, Minnesota that would be filled with Cornhole, bonfires, and lots of time on the lake. It was this trip, that Zach and Georgia first met. Just as Leann suspected, Zach and Georgia hit it off. One week into the trip, Leann convinced Georgia to apply for jobs in the Mankato area. Georgia spent that Friday applying for positions with a few Architecture and Engineering firms without any real expectation of getting a call back or an interview. The following Tuesday she had an interview and by Wednesday she had accepted a position with Brunton Architects. The Brunton office was ironically one block from Zach’s town house at the time. Zach and Georgia were both shocked at how quickly this vacation turned into something more. Several weeks later, Georgia moved to Minnesota and the rest is history!

Zach was very dedicated to coordinating a surprise proposal. At the beginning of August, Georgia made a trip to Illinois for her friend Lexi Kurtz's bridal shower. Zach utilized this weekend to schedule an appointment with his neighbor, Carrie, who works at a local jewelry store. Carrie was able to help Zach work though all the details of selecting a ring using notes she had kept on file from a previous visit where Georgia and her maid of honor, Nicole, looked at engagement rings. Between the time that Zach ordered the ring and when he could pick it up, the jewelry store had to contact him several times. This store has a great system where they can text customers from a randomized number with a generic message saying, "your package has arrived" that appears to be spam in the event that a customer's partner sees the text. Zach actually received one of these notifications while he was sitting next to Georgia on their lunch breaks. Fortunately, Georgia didn't notice, so his plan was still intact. With the ring finalized, Zach hired a local photographer to help plan and capture the special moment. With her recommendations, Zach selected the Red Jacket Park bridge as being the perfect spot. Zach made a dinner reservation for the day that he was planning to propose and told Georgia that they were going to an early birthday dinner since they had other plans each weekend leading up to her birthday. Playing into this cover, Zach took Georgia shopping to find a new dress for the occasion to make sure that she felt her best on the big day. On the Day of, Zach took her to the park and told her that they were early for their reservation. He convinced Georgia to climb to the top of the bridge so they could look over the edge at the river. When they start to head towards the middle of the Bridge, Zach stops, turns around and out of the woods walks the photographer with the most gorgeous white roses. Zach takes the bouquet and meets Georgia, who is shocked and overwhelmed with emotion. Noticing how surprised Georgia is, Zach asks her, "are you nervous", and once she nods her head, he says, "it's okay, I am too". And without any further hesitation, Zach bends one knee and asks Georgia to marry him. With tears in her eyes, Georgia accepts! The photographer captured the proposal and gave the couple a few minutes to soak in the moment before breaking out the Busch Lights to celebrate! While at Red Jacket, Zach and Georgia had an engagement photo session at several different areas of the park. They ended the evening with a nice dinner and reliving all of the planning details that Zach was able to pull off.