A Bit of History:

It has been over 8 years since Jenni and Will first met at Gulf High School in New Port Richey, FL in the fall of 2001. Will sat in front of Jenni during their junior year in Ms. Bakkala’s class. While Jenni and Will never dated during high school, there was a mutual attraction that was only realized years later. Jenni remembers openly flirting with Will, which got her nowhere because he was oblivious to her advances. Jenni and Will parted ways after high school, working and pursuing their educations. On March 22, 2008 their paths crossed on Myspace and the lines of communication were opened again. Will wrote Jenni a message that said, “long time no see, just checking up on you. hows it going?" to which she replied and soon enough they went on their firt date to the Cheesecake Factory. They began dating on August 23, 2008 and have stuck together during Will's deployment to D.C. Jenni and Will currently reside in Palm Harbor, FL.

 

The Proposal:

Jenni and Will got engaged on September 5, 2009. Here’s the story…

Will was deployed to Arlington, VA during May of 2009. After Jenni and Will making several visits to see each other, Will came to Florida again to visit Jenni and his family. Will told Jenni that he had made dinner reservations at Salt Rock Grill in Indians Rocks for that Saturday night. Fancy restaurant reservations are something that rarely happens (clue #1), so Jenni was already suspicious of Will’s intentions for the night. Early in the day, Jenni and Will went to visit Will’s parents at their house while some of their friends were over. Upon introducing Jenni to these slightly inebriated friends, one guy says, “So Jenni, you’re the one that’s getting hitched to ol’ Willie, huh?” Jenni simply replied “no, not yet,” with a joking tone to dismiss his comment (clue #2).  How odd, she thought. This could have been a sign or simply a joke, but Jenni was certainly curious.

Will and Jenni went back to their apartment to prepare for the special dinner. Will pulled a brand new shirt from his suitcase which really got Jenni suspicious, as she knows that Will almost NEVER buys new clothes for himself (clue #3). They proceeded to dinner and had a delicious meal. After eating, Will suggested that the two of them take a walk on the beach. It was a beautiful Florida night with a full moon overhead. An approaching storm in the gulf provided occasional flashes of light. After stalling Jenni to allow several couples to walk by, Will proclaimed that he loved Jenni very much and asked her to marry him. Jenni, overcome with emotion, barely squeaked out a “yes!” and Will slipped the ring on her finger. The night was truly magical and memorable for the couple.