Kara and Chadwick’s Sunny Rosemary Beach Engagement

Chadwick dropped down on one knee and asked Kara to marry him on a sunny November afternoon in Rosemary Beach, Florida. Their story began in the same place, on the same grass, under the same sun, many months ago. “Life” brought them together, and they’ve never looked back.

The couple met at the beginning of the pandemic, initially two strangers living across the country from each other. She was in Dallas, Texas, and he was in Oxford, Mississippi. They both drove down to Florida to spend a week at the beach with a few of their mutual friends. The first day they met, Chadwick agreed to go on a “short” run with Kara, which turned out to be seven miles. They spent more time walking than running, but the rest, as they say, is history.

When the week ended and it was time for Kara to go back to Dallas, Chadwick admitted that he liked her and wanted to know if they could continue to talk even while he was in Oxford. She said yes, and they spoke almost every day, continuing to get to know each other. Soon enough, Kara and Chadwick started dating. She spent the summer in Memphis with her family to be closer to Chadwick while he studied for the Bar. The couple spent weekends at his family’s lake house and traveled on other small adventures, making the most of their time together. After Chadwick completed the Bar Exam, the two of them went to Charleston as a celebration trip. Their feelings for each other had grown, and it was there that they told each other they had fallen in love.

Kara moved back to Dallas at the end of the summer, and Chadwick moved to Jackson, Mississippi, to start his new job as a law clerk. They navigated long-distance while living 400 miles from each other, banked up hundreds of hours on Facetime, and learned so much about communication, patience, and grace. It wasn’t always perfect or easy, but some of the best things come with hard work.

As the holidays approached, Kara had an inkling that a proposal might be around the corner. The pair spent Thanksgiving week in Rosemary Beach with Chadwick’s family. His sisters mentioned going to the Pearl, a beautiful boutique hotel, for a girls’ day on Saturday. As they walked around the beach town, they popped in a few stores before eventually making it to the Pearl. Chadwick’s oldest sister, Bridges, walked straight past the front door. When Kara asked why, she turned around and said, “Oh Kara, we aren’t actually going to the Pearl.” At that moment, Kara saw her sister Courtney, who lives in Memphis, smiling at her from the grassy lawn in front of the hotel.Though she was taken by surprise, this marked the beginning of Kara and Chadwick’s sunny Rosemary Beach engagement, a day that the couple will never forget.

It took Kara a minute to understand what was happening until Courtney gave Kara the biggest hug and told her, “You’re getting engaged!” Then Courtney pointed towards the beach, and Kara saw Chadwick standing where the grass meets the boardwalk. It was “their spot” – the same place where they had shared their first date months before. He walked out to meet her and took her hand. After reading scripture from a custom-made leather Bible, saying many sweet words, and telling Kara that he loved her and has loved her for a long time, he got down on one knee and asked Kara to marry him. She said “YES!”

Following the proposal, Chadwick told Kara there was another surprise waiting for her. A short drive to another beach access point led them to their families and close friends who had flown down to share in the celebration and were waiting to congratulate the newly engaged couple! There were many hugs and happy tears. They spent the rest of the night gathered around a beach bonfire and celebrated their engagement surrounded by everyone they love, making for an idyllic end to Kara and Chadwick’s sunny Rosemary Beach engagement.