Mark and Marci met around 1997 when Mark migrated to sunny Florida to escape
the long grey winters of Columbus, Ohio. Marci was already working at Storyline
Concepts in Orlando with Mark's friend and ex-coworker Charles. When Storyline wanted
to hire more artists, Mark got his opportunity to relocate. They were cubicle mates and
friends for a couple of years, and remained friends after both accepted different jobs
in the Orlando area.
In 2004 Mark's employer, Action Products, needed to add a second graphic designer
to its lineup, and Mark asked Marci if she knew anyone who might be interested in the job. She jumped
at the opportunity to work at a toy company with her old friend and co-worker Mark, and landed the job. This time, both
were single and before long, romance blossomed. Their first date was on February 21, 2004.
They spent that summer of 2004 dodging hurricanes (four of them hit Florida that year: Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne) and
house shopping. By mid-September they were settled in just in time for Hurricane Jeanne, the last of that busy season,
which fortunately did almost no damage to their new house. Since then, they have spent many weekends redecorating, relandscaping,
and renovating their house, where they still reside with their two cats, Willow and Allie.
Mark popped the question on October 29, 2009 while on vacation in Asheville. On their last evening of vacation, after walking
downtown for dinner, they returned to
Hill House Bed & Breakfast and sat on the front
porch to relax. Mark asked Marci to close her eyes, then he took her hand and slipped a beautiful sapphire ring on while
asking her to marry him. After years together, there was little doubt that the only answer could be yes, and it was!
Mark and Marci met around 1997 when Mark migrated to sunny Florida to escape
the long grey winters of Columbus, Ohio. Marci was already working at Storyline
Concepts in Orlando with Mark's friend and ex-coworker Charles. When Storyline wanted
to hire more artists, Mark got his opportunity to relocate. They were cubicle mates and
friends for a couple of years, and remained friends after both accepted different jobs
in the Orlando area.
In 2004 Mark's employer, Action Products, needed to add a second graphic designer
to its lineup, and Mark asked Marci if she knew anyone who might be interested in the job. She jumped
at the opportunity to work at a toy company with her old friend and co-worker Mark, and landed the job. This time, both
were single and before long, romance blossomed. Their first date was on February 21, 2004.
They spent that summer of 2004 dodging hurricanes (four of them hit Florida that year: Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne) and
house shopping. By mid-September they were settled in just in time for Hurricane Jeanne, the last of that busy season,
which fortunately did almost no damage to their new house. Since then, they have spent many weekends redecorating, relandscaping,
and renovating their house, where they still reside with their two cats, Willow and Allie.
Mark popped the question on October 29, 2009 while on vacation in Asheville. On their last evening of vacation, after walking
downtown for dinner, they returned to Hill House Bed & Breakfast and sat on the front
porch to relax. Mark asked Marci to close her eyes, then he took her hand and slipped a beautiful sapphire ring on while
asking her to marry him. After years together, there was little doubt that the only answer could be yes, and it was!