We met at Montage Laguna Beach when I was 20 and he was 24. I was a restaurant hostess and he was a cook. Not knowing much about hospitality, I thought everyone in a chef’s coat was a chef, so every time I saw him, I’d say, “Hi Chef!” He thought I was flirting and started talking to me. After four months of working side by side, he asked me out on the cook line. Nearly five years later, we still work at Montage, have grown in our careers together, and continue building our future side by side.

One of our favorite memories was at Disneyland. We collect Disney pins and have a tradition of buying each other one every visit. Two young children approached us wanting to trade pins. Without hesitation, Joaquin gave a little boy one of his favorite pins and told him he didn’t need to trade anything back. He found another pin for the girl. Watching his kindness made me fall even more in love with him. He said those kids would remember that moment forever. He is that person.

We would put every dollar toward purchasing our first home. As a young couple, homeownership feels increasingly out of reach, but it’s a dream we’re working hard to achieve. Our goal is to become homeowners by age 35 and create a stable, loving place to build our future family. This opportunity would bring us one step closer to having a home of our own and creating memories there for years to come.