We met at the famous Murphy’s Law Irish Pub in the most romantic city in the world...Rochester, New York. Jordan was celebrating a post-game win with his Rochester Rattler teammates and Cara was out on the town with some of her friends from high school. As it turns out, Cara ran into one of her friends she met while coaching a lacrosse camp in Nantucket a few summers back and he happened to be one of Jordan’s teammates and closest friends (Way to go Ned Crotty!). Jordan and Cara spoke briefly and Jordan learned that Cara was moving to New York in a few weeks to start a summer internship before heading into her senior year at Colgate University. Jordan was intent on seeing Cara again in New York so he asked Ned for her number and reached out to her nearly every day (both sober and sometimes with a lot of liquid courage) until she finally agreed to meet with him.

Once Cara arrived in New York, Jordan decided to take her out on a very romantic coffee date...on a Monday. As it turned out, of the one million buildings in NYC, they were working in the exact same one. It was destiny. What could go wrong? The coffee date was a disaster. Jordan had a little too much espresso and Cara was still recovering from the weekend. It was awkward, uncomfortable, and they seemed to not connect on anything. After leaving the coffee shop, Jordan reached out to Cara and told her that he promised he could do better than that. He asked if he could have a second shot and take her on a dinner date the next night. From then on out...it was the summer of Jordan and Cara (and occasionally Dave Lawson). August came and Cara had to head back to college. She wanted to make long distance work but Jordan wasn’t sure. Heartbroken, Cara went back for her senior fall semester and a week later, Jordan was magically ready to make the commitment. The year was full of trips to New York City, early train rides, and Jordan being the oldest person at every frat party.

Once Cara graduated, she moved to NYC to start her career and be closer to Jordan. Just after a year, Jordan decided he wanted to take on his next challenge and apply to business school. Jordan was accepted into Duke's Fuqua School of Business shortly after. Knowing that they didn’t want to go back to long distance, Cara agreed to move to Durham, NC with Jordan under one condition...Cara was allowed to get a puppy. Living in Durham was an incredible period of growth for both of us. We navigated a new city together, moved in with each other for the first time, started a new job, began grad school, brought the most lovable dog into our lives, and met amazing friends along the way. After two years in Durham, we decided to move back to Philadelphia to be closer to family and start the next chapter of our lives.

There is no better setting for a proposal than a cold and windy December night in Pennsylvania. Due to Cara’s love for the holidays, Jordan had planned the proposal around the Christmas Light Show at Longwood Gardens; a spectacle they have attended the last few years. Despite a few minor giveaways leading up to the date (like Jordan asking about his outfit for Saturday night on the Tuesday before hand…), Cara had no idea what was in store. Jordan truthfully wasn’t that nervous. He had everything planned out, the ring was secure, the photographer was prepped, and he was 99.9% sure she was going to say yes. The minute he pulled into the parking lot… everything changed. The nerves kicked in and he could barely park the car. The plan was to walk around the gardens for an hour or so before making their way to the Italian Water Gardens for the main event. That changed quickly and immediately after walking in the front gate Jordan proclaimed, “Okay I heard the Italian Water Garden is great… Lets go there first!” Jordan couldn’t wait, he was ready to ask the question. They briskly walked to the location without stopping, even when Cara requested a hot chocolate to warm herself up…. Jordan said “No. You can get one after we see the Italian Water Gardens.” After that was a blur of emotions, happiness, and complete and utter shock from Cara. It was perfect. The couple then drove home and they were greeted by their families and friends.