It all started at the College of Saint Scholastica up in Duluth, MN. It was orientation day of our first day of PT school. The whole class went around stating where they grew up, what college they went to, and a fun fact about themselves. Mackenzie stated that she grew up in Sioux Falls, SD which made Joe perk up from the back row because he went to play football in Sioux Falls at Augustana for his freshman year of undergrad. Joe left Augustana after freshman year to finish out his college years playing football at St. John's and studying to get into PT school. Later in the day, Joe went over and sat next to Mackenzie to see what this Sioux Falls girl was all about. They quickly realized what a small world it was. Joe thought Mackenzie was pretty cute. Mackenzie thought Joe was hilarious. One day a few weeks later, Joe saw Mackenzie studying by herself at school. He asked if she would want to go over a few things for the exam they had the next day. They spent the rest of the night studying and getting to know each other, and finished out the night with ice cream from McDonald's (still one of their favorite late night snacks).

Over the next year, Joe and Mack end up spending a lot of time together studying for Anatomy exams and letting loose at Grandma's Bar on the weekends. They would spend time together in Duluth and back in the cities where most of their friends lived. Mack got to know all the Johnnies and Joe got to know all of the Gophers, which can be quite a rowdy time if you get the two groups together. In the first year of PT school, students get placed on a clinical rotation to complete between Year 1 and Year 2. When Joe and Mackenzie got their placements, they realized they were placed in the same city... KANSAS CITY. Is it fate? Maybe. They travel down to Kansas City in May of 2019. They spent time going to breweries, concerts, baseball games, golfing, and exploring the city. Joe was staying with his cousin Andy Drey and Mack had her own apartment for the summer. Andy took the two of them out every weekend and got to see their friendship turn into a relationship. Thanks for third wheeling that summer Andy :) Around Memorial Day, Joe invited Mack up to Storm Lake, IA where she would spend a weekend getting to know his family even more. Joe says this was the weekend that he knew he wanted to make Mack his girlfriend (officially).

On one of their last weekends in Kansas City, Joe and Mack buy tickets to the Goo Goo Dolls. It was at that concert that Joe finally asked Mackenzie to be his girlfriend (only took him exactly 1 year) and Mack of course said yes. So, if you hear Goo Goo Dolls playing at the wedding, now you'll know the significance.

Many more years, memories, trips, and exciting life changes go by. They graduated May of 2021, started their careers as Doctors of Physical Therapy, bought a house, and welcomed home their adorable black lab Remi. Joe and Mackenzie plan a winter weekend getaway in January of 2023. They have the trip planned for about 5 months and Joe decides he wants to plan a surprise engagement for Mack. The couple arrived in Duluth that Friday night and enjoyed a night of eating out at their favorite restaurant, Sir Benedicts, followed by a few drinks at the Rathskeller. The next day, Mackenzie could tell something was up with Joe as he nervously drove her up and down the north shore while he rattled off random questions such as "how deep do you think the lake is?" All the while, her friends and family made the trip up to Duluth for the surprise. They hid in bushes out by the lake while Joe and Mackenzie walked up to an overlook in the frigid cold air. After Joe popped the question and Mackenzie said "YES" their friends and family came running up. Mack was so shocked that they all came up for the night. They were BOTH shocked when their friends planned a surprise party bus to go hit the town that night and celebrate their engagement. We are so excited to share this next chapter with all of you surrounding us. Each of you have been a big part of our lives together and we can't wait to have you all in one place to celebrate our marriage. See you in Minneapolis!