How it all began
In the fall of 2011, a mutual friend introduced senior John to sophomore Danielle at a Hawken football game. From that night on, Danielle and John had a typical high school relationship filled with walks in the metro parks, parties, and prom dates. When John went off to college, they ended their relationship to explore life on their own.
Fast forward to fall of 2018, a few months after John finished hiking the PCT and Danielle was starting her graduate program at DU, Danielle’s mom (Wendy) saw on Facebook that John had moved to Denver. While Danielle was aware of this, she was not amused by John’s presence in Denver at first. When Wendy came to town, she insisted that Danielle invite John and a friend to dinner at a sushi restaurant. The entire dinner Danielle and John could not take their eyes off each other and knew this was the rekindling of something special. Even though they both matured and had various life experiences apart from each other for 6 years, it was like they didn’t skip a beat. The biggest change was that Danielle was a package deal with her dog Lola. After a few dates and some long conversations, Lola finally approved of John and they announced to the world that they were back together again, and this time for the long haul!
Since then, Danielle and John have navigated life side by side through master’s degrees and career changes, a pandemic, a sick Lola, and a through-hike, while sharing their love for nature and outdoor activities, as well as travel, food, wine, and art!
When they decided to take an international ski trip to Switzerland in March 2023, John thought it would be the perfect opportunity to propose to Danielle. But Switzerland was too obvious, so he proposed two nights before they left for their trip at the Devils Thumb Ranch, one of Danielle’s favorite places in Colorado. With Lola’s assistance, John successfully surprised Danielle with a breathtaking mountain proposal that was truly a fairy tale. Sticking with the mountain theme, they look forward to tying the knot at the T-Lazy-7 Ranch in Aspen in September 2024!
...and that is just the beginning of our incredible journey.
