Katie and Alex met in August of 2021 at the University of Kentucky, during a season of life when neither of them had much figured out yet — and they were perfectly fine with that. They ended up in the same friend group freshman year simply because they lived down the hall from each other in Jewell.

That semester, Katie broke her knee and found herself crutching around campus. One night, a mutual friend invited the group to a party. Not wanting to be “that girl,” Katie ditched her crutches. She leaned on walls, friends — and eventually Alex. By the end of the night, Alex had the full-time job of being her crutch. Then, somewhere between the dancing and laughing, she kissed her crutch.

What felt like a playful college moment turned out to be the beginning of something far more meaningful. They were always together after that! They tried to keep things casual, but everyone around them saw what they couldn’t yet admit. They were becoming each other’s person.

Three months later, on November 17th, Alex and Katie finally put words to what everyone else already knew. They were boyfriend and girlfriend.

From that moment on, they lived the college days just having fun. Then they started to mature and build a life together. They adopted two beautiful pets, Tia the Cat and Nova the Dog. They grew closer to each other and closer to God, not all at once, but step by step.

Looking back now, it’s clear that nothing about their story was accidental. God placed them in each other’s lives four years ago, long before they understood why. He knew who they would become, how they would shape one another, and where their story was headed.