In the summer of 2009, just months after Jillian got her driver's license, she made her way to her first-ever hardcore show - Mansfield Music Fest. On Hanley Road through a wooded passage, bands were lined up to play on a stage constructed of plywood with the agreement that the previous band would generously stand in front of the performing bands cabinets and amps so they would not roll off the front of the stage. A clearly distinguished event, the "sound booth" consisted of a pickup truck bed with a generator for electricity. Due to her true and undeniable naivety, when the first china symbol rang out and the vocalist shouted "Everyone come down to the front", she followed directions and in mere seconds was broadsided by a human. The strike was a surprise, she flew and rolled through the grass wondering who could have possibly just hit someone for no reason. When she looked up, a tan boy in what appeared to be a bootlegged Cleveland Indians band t-shirt, marched away without even offering to help her up. His name was Jacob Henry. And she was afraid of him for years to follow.

When Jillian moved to Sydney in 2011, she came home in 2013 to visit. While she was home she arranged to meet a friend at Denny's. When she walked in, she ran into the same boy who years earlier had tackled her in that mosh pit. He smiled. She had never seen him smile before. They were friends on Facebook, hardly worthy of the term "friends", but nonetheless had some knowledge of one another. He asked about Australia, she asked about his recent goings-on and walked away curious about this person she always perceived as a little bit scary. He seemed totally harmless now.

When Jillian returned to Sydney, she continued living her life as normal. Not long after she attended a farewell bonfire for her friend Goon from the Bahamas. While sitting around a bonfire, an Australian sat next to her and they began to chat. He asked her where she was from to which she replied "the states". He asked whereabouts, and she said "Ohio", fully prepared to distinguish between Ohio, Idaho, and Iowa. But to her surprise, he said "I've been to Ohio, where are you from?". This mildly surprised her but she answered "A small town called Mansfield, it's between Cleveland and Columbus. You've probably never heard of it." Surprised again, Jonny replied "I've been to Mansfield! Do you know Bonfire Nation? Relax It's Just Coffee? Jon Bourcier and Jake Henry?" As it turns out, Jonny had played in a band that toured with a band Jake had toured with. They had known one another for years. A month after Jillian moved home, Jonny had arranged a farewell tour for his band Creations with Divebomb, Jake's hardcore band from Mansfield, Ohio. When it came time to pick up Jonny from the airport, Jillian picked him up and delivered him to Jacob. He stayed with Jake before and after the tour ended. In the spirit of spending time with her friend, Jillian found herself spending time at Jake's house. And when Jonny flew back to Sydney, she didn't stop spending time at Jake's house.

After Jonny left, Jillian did what she could to spend time with Jake. She had started to develop an unspoken crush on Jake. He had proven to be kind, bought her ice-cream and watched Bridget Jone's when she had a bad day, teased her into making him birthday cookies (that were regretfully eaten by her brother before she could deliver them to him), they played cards with Gary at Relax. She waited to see if he would make a move. He didn't. In December she moved to Nashville to pursue a creative opportunity, but they pledged to keep in touch. When a hoverboard accident resulted in a broken arm and a homebound few weeks, Jake and Jillian Facetimed almost every day. They would fall asleep on the phone watching Making a Murderer or talking about their favorite visual and musical artists. They discovered they had similar backgrounds, growing up in Christian homes and then attending Bible college, they had a mutual passion for showing the love of Jesus in the way they cared for people. The calls became unmissable and the friendship a safe and healing place for them both. One Thursday, Jillian drove home to surprise her parents for the weekend. Without considering that they would have to work the next day, Jake asked her to meet him at Denny's. She was nervous because she hadn't seen him since their friendship had developed and wondered if it would be weird to see him again. When she arrived, he sat in her passenger seat and they talked for hours. In a move surely inspired by the great romantics of history, Jake took the auxiliary cord and played "Crocodile Rock". The song rang out and he made his move. Elton sang, "Holding hands and skipping stones", to which Jake looked Jillian in the eyes, grinned and said, "We're holding hands now." And that was it. She was smitten.

In July, Jillian moved home. Nashville may have been a misadventure, but the distance forced both Jillian and Jake to decide what they really wanted. Their friendship became a relationship that took time to grow and that was okay with them both. They went to concerts, made more friends than they could count, explored new cities, went skiing/snowboarding, melded into one another's families (both genetic and non-genetic), loved on their two dogs - Bonnie & Thor, bought their home, started Henry Screen Printing, changed jobs, overcame obstacles, but always slept easier knowing they had a teammate in one another. Life is truly enriched by the people you keep close. You could say that life dealt us a loner and we're taking the next step to be partners forever. It's hard to believe this is just the beginning when we've done so much good life together already, but we are beyond excited for this adventure and hope that our wedding day will be a celebration that unites everyone we love in a day dedicated to the undeserved but eternally invaluable gift of love we have been given. Hope to see you all there. Jake & Jillian