Amanda and Zachary

Zak and I met while I was going to school at Arizona State University. He actually messaged me on Instagram and we started talking. While Zak was going through survival training, he would ask me 5 questions every day. We got to know each other so our first date felt like I was talking with an old friend. On our second date, Zak took me to Sanctuary. We discussed our goals and aspirations. Zak told me that he would be moving to Korea in a year and he wanted to be up front and honest about his position. It was then that I said, “A year is a short time in a lifetime.” These two dates were so special and ever since then, after many Harry Potter & pizza nights, we fell in love.

Zak and I were planning a small wedding in Tampa Florida. Since he is stationed in Korea, I knew he would only have so much time off of the Korean peninsula. He told me he had a serious work training exercise the week before the wedding, so he was going to plan something special for me. Zak wrote me letters for every day for a week prior to our wedding. These letters would have specific things planned for me, like go to our favorite dinner place, have a spa day, etc. On the 3 day of letters, he told me that his sisters were flying from all over the East Coast to meet me at Sanctuary. We were going to take family photos together and enjoy a night together as sisters. When I arrived at Sanctuary, a Rachel Cost, a very nice lady from who works at Sanctuary took me on a golf cart to the room (it was a pretty fancy place that I have never stayed at so I thought this was totally normal). As I am getting out of the golf cart I hear Zak and I’s wedding song, but I thought his sisters were just getting in the romantic spirit. Then Rachel from the resort asked for my purse. Without hesitation, I gave it to her, again thinking this was totally normal. As I was walking down the path, I come face-to-face with Zak. I was so surprised to see him standing in front of me. I 100% thought he was still in Korea. As I walk over to him, he drops to his knee and asked me to marry him. It was the best surprise in my entire life. He even had KSL Photography there so we could immediately take engagement pictures. There were lots of tears and smiles.