Connect How did your love story begin?

We first crossed paths in Calculus I, but it wasn’t until a year later, mid-pandemic—that fate stepped in. We reconnected in a class, and through mutual friends. It felt magnetic, like some unseen force had been waiting for the right moment to pull us together—and once it did, we never looked back. We weathered the hard environment of COVID and being at a particularly challenging college forced us to have hard conversations early on. We were prepared for serious life challenges at 19.

What is your favorite memory you've shared as a couple?

After four relentless years of hard work at the Air Force Academy, we finally exhaled on the beach at Bellows AFB. With the sun warming our faces and the waves crashing at our feet, we laughed like carefree kids. It was Tim’s first time ever being in an open ocean and jumping through waves. That day wasn’t just a break; it was a reward, a celebration of everything we’d endured and everything still ahead.

What would you do with $20,000?

We come from opposite sides of the country, Alabama and Massachusetts. Although our love bridges that gap, our finances are tighter. Tim is working for finance at Vandenberg SFB and I at the 2nd Space Launch Squadron for the Space Force. With our parents unable to help, we’ve been saving little by little. This prize would make our dream wedding possible: something beautiful, heartfelt, and uniquely us. No debt, no stress—just a celebration of love surrounded by the people who got us here.