Emily Walterhouse & Gordon Rooney

After meeting at a group Bible study downtown, Emily and Gordon chatted and their mutual love of running came up. The new friends decided to take on the Cooper River Bridge Run as a team. After the run, they soon became a couple and two dated for almost three years. During that time, says Emily, they dated long distance, earned undergraduate degrees, spent holidays with each others’ families, and got to know one another “better every day.” After a dinner downtown, they headed to Folly Beach for a nighttime stroll, where Gordon surprised Emily with a proposal on one knee. The couple plans to wed August 18, 2012.

Photograph by Helen Rooney