Kari & David
July 31, 2021
On May 21, 2016, a warm spring Saturday in the City, Kari was out in the West Village having a late lunch with one of her dearest friends, Kristin, and Kristin's then-boyfriend (now husband), Colin--one of Dave's friends from high school.
At the same time, Dave was on his way to the West Village to meet one of his other friends from high school, Per, so they could plan their best man speeches for the upcoming wedding of their best friend, Jeff Long.
Knowing that Dave would be in the West Village with Per, and wanting Kari and Dave to meet, Colin and Kristin texted with Per to have him bring Dave to Quality Eats, a local West Village restaurant where Colin, Kristin, and Kari had just arrived.
At Quality Eats, Dave and Kari quickly bonded over their mutual love of hockey and 90s rap, the fact that they are both only children, and how their family and friendships are central to who they are as people. And the rest is history . . . .
After several months of dating, Kari and Dave decided to take their first trip away together. Having just watched Dave's favorite movie--Miracle on Ice--and because Kari had always wanted to go to the Adirondacks, they chose Lake Placid.
On a cold, snowy, wintery weekend in December 2016, Dave took Kari to Lake Placid and showed her the town where he came as kid with his mom and dad for hockey camp. He showed her the Olympic hockey rink where the U.S. beat Russia in the 1980 Olympics and recited for Kari every word of Herb Brooks' speech from that night--a speech which Dave continues to recite for anyone who will listen! They snowshoed around Lake Placid. They explored the charming town and all its shops.
And on a Friday night, all cozied up in their lakeside cabin at the Lake Placid Lodge, Kari and Dave told each other how much they loved the other and how fortunate they felt to have the other in their life. And Lake Placid solidified its place in their hearts forever.
On February 8, 2019, after Kari had been away in London for work, Dave and Kari had planned to have a casual dinner with their dear friends, James and Jillian . . . or so Kari thought.
Midday on that Friday, James reached out to Dave and Kari and asked whether they wanted to meet at his office first to have a drink before heading to dinner, not an unusual offer considering that James' office was on the 83rd floor of One World Trade with some of the most incredible views of New York.
Kari and Dave arrived to James' office a little after 5pm and James greeted them but quickly apologized that he was stuck on a conference call and wouldn't be free for at least 30 minutes. He then suggested (seemingly out of the blue) that they should go see the roof while they wait. And several minutes later one of the building's managers came down to meet them.
Under the guise of taking them on a special tour, Kari and Dave were led to the rooftop of One World Trade. They stepped outside and took in the sweeping views of New York City on that perfectly clear, crisp winter night.
As they were staring out over the city, Dave got down on one knee and proposed, asking Kari to be his partner and to share with him the vast world that was before their feet that night. Hardly believing what was happening, Kari said "yes"!
Waiting for them back in James' office was a bottle of champagne and James and all of his colleagues with congratulations and well wishes--all of whom had been in on the big ruse. From there, Dave took Kari to Quality Eats, the restaurant where they met 3 years ago. The following day they spent calling family and friends, and hitting all of their favorite spots around New York.
Kari & David
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