An Ocean of New Beginnings

Michael Whitley, general manager of Jeff Ruby’s premium steakhouse, The Precinct, had nearly given up his hope of finding “the one.” That is, until he met Erin.

“I joined Zoosk, a dating website – as much as I was reluctant to do so – and stumbled upon [Erin]. We hit it off from there and decided to meet up at Carabello Coffee in Newport, KY. It wasn’t quite what I expected, but I was there for a reason. The Lord absolutely brought us together.” Michael says. “She had such an infectious, beautiful laugh. She’s a beautiful person. On our first few dates, we had feelings that we had never had before that were foreign to me, and foreign to her as well. We knew very early where we wanted to go with this.”

In six months, Michael knew he was ready to ask the question. After flying Erin out to San Diego, Michael proposed with a beautiful ring hidden under a shell that Michael had found on the black sand beach of Iceland. Michael and Erin will be tying the knot on July 9th. While a Tuesday may seem like a non-traditional day for a wedding, the couple chose the date of their one-year anniversary to say their vows.

“In all of my years, I kept hearing, ‘Oh, when you find the one, you’ll know. It won’t be like anything you’ve ever felt.’ I thought that was all fairy tales…until I met Erin.”