Being Raleigh natives and sharing dozens of mutual friends, it was a wonder that our paths didn't cross sooner. We were introduced at an engagement party (shoutout Matt and Taylor) by Danny Myers (Joe's long time friend) Husband of Anna Myers (Katie's childhood bestie). When we met, Katie was struck by the kindness and sincerity of Joe and Joe was nearly brought to his knees by Katie's humor, wit, beauty, and compassion for others. Before leaving, Anna told Joe that he should ask Katie out. He said he was thinking the same thing and thus began the story of Katie and Joe. Our first date was at Fount Coffee. The date was under an hour because Katie said that she “had to take her dog to the vet”. Anyone who knows Katie’s dog, Olive, will know that this is extremely on brand. Joe was suspicious but he discovered it was true when he met Olive on their next date, a 3-hour walk at the art museum. Many dates were to come and we started officially dating a few months later. The next year was full of new adventures together. From Joe reluctantly starting the Gilmore Girls series (and eventually loving it) to Katie slooowly becoming a Celtics fan by watching countless games, we shared many memories together. From fun trips to the beach and lake where we spent quality time with our families, to a whirlwind of a day trip to Nashville, to countless Jubala coffee runs, we were loving our time spent with one another. During all of the exciting and mundane adventures together, we fell in love! Our journey has been filled with conversations about our passions, joys, sorrows and faith. In these conversations we quickly realized that we approach topics from different angles, but we love and admire how the other one thinks. Just as each member of the body of Christ fills in the gaps of one another, we started to learn and appreciate how we fill each other’s gaps and began to really think about a future together. We were beginning to discover something that cannot be learned alone: that our sorrows are cut in half and our joys are doubled in a life that is shared together. On February 25th, 2023, exactly 364 days after we first met, we went back to Fount Coffee for the first time since our first date. We arrived after hours to an empty shop, playing one of our favorite songs. A table was set up with flowers, candles, pictures and a letter recounting joys of the year we had spent together. Joe got down on one knee and asked Katie to marry him. It will forever be one of the happiest days of our lives! We cannot wait to celebrate our marriage with you and we are thankful for the role you have played in our lives. We hope to see you on September 3rd! “Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together!” // Psalm 34:3