John Chavis: I planned my “dirty 30” birthday party to be a big ordeal and have a ton of people there with a live band and all, just to be able to grab the microphone during their set break to get down on one knee and ask my now-wife, Sheila, to be mine forever. In front of so many friends and family, her saying yes was the best birthday gift I could have ever asked for.
Ruby Rogers: My now-husband, Mike, proposed in late 2018 while I was heavily medicated and soaking in a tub after slightly tearing a tendon in my foot. He casually came in with a ring and asked, “Do you wanna spend forever with me?” We chose April 4, 2020, as our wedding date, exactly 10 years to the day since he asked me to be his girlfriend, and took our time planning everything except for a global pandemic. Just a week before our big day, everything shut down. We were so upset but decided to turn our frowns upside down and do something unconventional – we got married at the entrance of our neighborhood. Our friends, family, and neighbors lined the roads in cars, golf carts, bicycles, and even on foot, all while social distancing. Instead of walking down an aisle, my father walked me down the middle of the road. Although I wish I could’ve had the big day we planned, this was so much more than we could’ve asked for.
Jessika-Laura Rodrigues - It was nothing fancy, which was perfectly fine with me! I was pregnant with my daughter at the time. It was Christmas morning and my birthday. He literally rolled over in bed and had the ring box in his hand.
Mike Dubak: I proposed to my wife in between the runways at Indianapolis International Airport. I worked in aviation. We were run off by the police. Now where I proposed is the middle of the new Indy terminal. We had only been dating for three months, but I knew she was the one. We’ve been married 25 years next month.
Bailey Mikolay: I’m a wedding sales manager, so I live and breathe weddings. But I never wanted a huge proposal or wedding because I’m incredibly introverted. My now-husband is a huge romantic who lives for big acts and displays of love, but since he was proposing to me, he had to speak my love language. He proposed in our little apartment at the time, with just us and our girls. My then-3-year-old saw the balloon he had and yelled out, “Happy Birthday!” as I said yes. It was truly perfect.
Christy Clanton: My husband couldn’t hold it in. No ring, late night, in the parking lot of a gas station while sharing a Lunchable. That was almost 30 years ago, and I am still so very happy I said “Yes!” Things could never match the value of the way he loves me.
Joye McElrath Hanna: My boyfriend and I spent the day arguing at his parents’ beach house. His mother had enough of us and told us to go home and either get married or break up if we couldn’t get along. We packed up to leave when his sister said she wanted to ride home with us. After 40 minutes of silence, my boyfriend piped up to say, “How soon can we get married?” I answered, “Not today; I don’t have anything to wear.” He said, “I’ll give you two months.” I countered, “I’ll take five.” He said, “Make it four.” His sister threw up her hands and said, “Y’all are crazy.” We were married 49 years when he died two years ago.
