The beginning
Our Story
It took us a while to get here. Here's the story.
How we met
We were both studying at Penn State but never crossed paths. Samantha was a Lion Ambassador and a student government fanatic. John was in the honors college and played trumpet in the Blue Band. We didn't know each other, but a friend from school knew us both.
In 2019, we both ended up in Baltimore — Samantha for law school, John working at Johns Hopkins. Our mutual friend, Hunter, thought it was too good to pass up and introduced us at a Penn State alumni event, then took everyone to an open mic where John was playing guitar that night. Sammy asked John out that night, but it didn't work out then, and we lost touch. About a year later, we met again when Sammy heard that John had gotten a golden retriever, whom she really wanted to meet.
We rang in the 2021 New Year together and went on a ski trip with our Baltimore friends for Sammy's 25th birthday that January.
April 10, 2021
In April 2021, the three of us — Samantha, John, and Kona — traveled to Largo, Florida, to stay at Mommom and Poppop’s condo. The plan was to stay a few weeks, but we stayed for a month and a half. It’s still our favorite shared memory. We spent our days studying and working from the beach and took Kona for ice cream at night.
Our time together
We moved from Baltimore to Cape May County in August 2022. We spend most of our time with our two favorite four-legged creatures, Kona and Yoshi. When we aren't spoiling our pups, we're watching Philadelphia or Penn State sports, traveling, going to the beach, golfing, or going to concerts together.
The proposal
On October 1, 2025, John proposed in Mykonos, Greece, during a family cruise through the Mediterranean. Samantha's brother and his now-fiancée were in on it. They walked the island with us, then peeled off so John could get Samantha alone by the coast, where a photographer was already waiting. John had been obsessing over the windmills of Mykonos for months, and Samantha didn't know why until the windmill moment happened.
Samantha's mom had smuggled the ring onto the ship less than a week earlier. John designed it himself, trying on settings until he found the one that felt like her. He told her how much she means to him. She cried, a lot. He did too.
Some of our favorite moments together
We have made some incredible memories together. Here's to making more.