It all began at Bible Study during our freshman year in 2019 where we first met. Our first interaction was brief but within a few weeks we met again in the dining hall where Ashley invited me to sit with her and her friends. I was as I usually was, very awkward and didn’t say much. I remember being so taken aback by her kindness and already thought she was cute. As our first year flew by, we didn’t see each other much and it wasn’t until our second year that Ashley led a virtual retreat group I was in. Afterward, she sent me a beautiful note and again I was so amazed by her kindness, but again failed to take the opportunity to talk with her more. Later that school year, Ashley reached out and asked if we could get coffee sometime and I, of course, said “yes, let me know when you come to SLO”, but was a typical guy and didn’t get the hint and left it at that. I guess the fourth time really is the charm in our story. When Ashley texted me a few months later to see how I was doing, I remember beaming with joy to hear from her, and from there our conversation flowed effortlessly. We sent each other our favorite music and talked about all of our hopes and dreams for our lives. Just the texting back and forth was obviously the start of something special. After a few short weeks, Ashley finally visited San Luis Obispo and we went on our first date at Custom House in Avila Beach. I was so nervous and to be honest the first hour was a little bit awkward but after dinner, we sat on the beach and talked for what felt like 15 minutes but it was multiple hours. When driving home, we talked about what this meant since we were still living in different places until the fall. Neither one of us wanted to hold the other back so we kept going back and forth saying we wanted the other to be free to date other people. Finally, we realized we were both thinking the same thing and decided not to see anyone else over the summer. We agreed to call at least once a week but within three days of Ashley being back in Sacramento, we were calling every day. I remember in the days following Ashley’s visit, my mom noticed our three-hour-long phone calls and said, “You’re gonna visit her, aren’t you?” She took the words right out of my mouth. A few more weeks passed before I went to Sacramento which were some of the best days of my life where I spent every possible moment with Ashley during the day before returning to the family friends I was staying with. From there, our relationship grew and today I thank God every day for blessing me with Ashley. So that’s my side of how we started dating. I hope it wasn’t terribly long or too boring. Looking forward to having all of you at our wedding! In Christ, Gabriel

We technically met at Bible Study at the Newman Center during our freshman year at Cal Poly. Side note, Gabe's parents met there, too! Sometime later in the quarter, I saw him at the cafeteria after Mass, sitting alone...well, turns out he was actually waiting for his soccer team. Trying to be nice, I went over and asked him to sit with my friends and me. I wish I could say this was the beginning of our love story, but God had greater plans. Some time had passed; I was home in Granite Bay because of COVID. I led a virtual retreat...and guess who was in my group: Gabe! Still, nothing. More time had passed; it was now March of our junior year. Pretty bored, I reached out to Gabe on Instagram asking if he wanted to get coffee if I ever visited SLO. To which he responded, "Hey! Yeah let me know when you come to SLO". Safe to say nothing came about. Now during May, I mustered up the courage again to reach out to him. This time was different, it ended up in us going on our first date! We never thought we would be engaged while one of us was in college, but God's plans are always better. We are unbelievably excited and grateful to get to keep chasing Heaven together. Please pray for us as we prepare for the Sacrament of Marriage! Love, Ashley