Melissa and I met on ChristianMingle.com in late June 2012. I had been previously married for 20 years and have 2 teenage daughters. Melissa didn’t have any kids and had never been married. At the time, she lived in Washington, near Seattle, and I lived in Boise, Idaho. To be honest, when I first saw Melissa’s profile, I didn’t think she would give me the time of day simply because of how far apart we were but I decided to say “Hi” anyway. To my surprise, she responded within a few hours. For the next few days, we sent small messages back and forth and then we began to share lengthy emails. We exchanged photos and life stories and jokes. It was very refreshing for me to have great conversations and not feel any of that awkwardness. I had been trying the online dating thing for a few months with some bad experiences. We both felt a spark and she asked for my phone number. Our first phone conversation was amazing! It was that kind of talk that went on for hours but didn’t seem like that long. It quickly reached a point where we would talk on the phone every evening and just tell each other about our day and recharge our batteries with laughter and encouragement.

We decided to meet with each other in Kennewick, Washington in mid-August. We chose Kennewick because that was the biggest city that was halfway between us. The first time I saw Melissa was in the line at the hotel check-in counter. I noticed her right away but she didn’t see me at first. I was standing behind her in line for a few minutes before she turned around. When she did turn around, she had a huge smile on her face and she gave me a hug. We both had used the same travel site and had booked at the same hotel and both had the same issues with the travel site not getting our reservations correct. It was one of those things that has turned into a “funny story” for both of us. The hotel upgraded us both to better rooms and we spent that weekend just hanging out around town. When the weekend was over, and we were driving back to our homes in opposite directions, we both felt sad. For me, I knew right then that I wanted to get closer. Melissa says that she felt that way at the beginning of the weekend.

We spent the next few weeks talking on the phone every day and emailing and texting. I made a couple of trips from Boise to the Seattle area to see her and she made a couple of trips to see me in Boise. It was also very refreshing for both of us to be with someone who was not going to have an expectation of sex. This “hook-up” expectation was something that bothered me about others I had dated from online sites and Melissa had had similar experiences. We continued this distance relationship for a while. Each time we had to say good-bye it became more difficult to say it. On October 18, 2012, I had a conversation with Melissa’s parents and asked their permission to marry Melissa. They gave their blessing and that was the day I asked her to marry me. Our wedding is set for August 4, 2013 and I now live in the Seattle area.

Through ChristianMingle.com, we both feel that God blessed us with one another. I mean, really, there is no way we would have “run into each other” had it not been for this site. We are both grateful for a site that at least gave the opportunity to find someone of the same moral character and beliefs. We have never been happier in our lives and we both owe it all to God using ChristianMingle.com to bring us together.