How it all started
Sparks flew from two super-likes on Tinder… Alex & Colton met at Madison Square Park in the late summer of 2016.
“I was waiting inline when he turned the corner. He saw me & his face lit-up — right from the start I loved making him smile.”
— Alex
“I got off the train and he was standing there with his infectious smile & massive backpack. I knew I was in for something special.”
— Colton
Alex coaxed the Mississippian into a first-ever-trip to his home state, New Jersey, where they hung out at a barcade and discovered shared passions for gaming, whiskey, and travel.
They fell in love under the big city lights and on frequent escapes upstate and elsewhere. Both new to NYC from college — Colton had just started medical school, and Alex had only just begun a new career in tech — they explored the city together, becoming more acquainted with the boroughs and each other.
In the six years since, they’ve explored 8 countries together, traveling whenever Dr. Welch can get the time off. When the pandemic hit in 2020, they hunkered down together and got a dog — going from “boyfriends” to “dads” with the addition of one Darcy Crosby Pepper Bird Welch.
They loved growing their little family, and it didn’t take long after for both to realize they wanted ‘forever’ together. Both separately made plans to propose on their much-anticipated 2021 Hawaii trip:
Colton was ready to pop the question with an engagement watch on the Road to Hana
Alex bought two engagement rings for a scenic overlook in Honolua.
Alex beat Colton to it by three days, and they’ve enjoyed saying fiancé ever since.
And the rest is history.
As fiancés, they’ve moved to a blissful new Brooklyn apartment, enjoyed raising Darcy into a grown-up gorl, knocked a couple more countries off the “to-do” list, and now, can’t wait to get married.
Leading them to this point! They cannot wait to celebrate their marriage with friends and family in New Orleans on November 11th, 2023.
