Picture It: Northwestern Mutual, 2010. I was a spunky redhead with a funky haircut and Geoffrey was the super shy guy that was great at spreadsheets. We were both board members of NM's Young Professionals, meeting weekly to support members and plan events. From poker runs to volunteering, we did a lot of stuff together. But as life happens, our board terms ended and life took us on different paths. We'd bump into each other every once in a while and catch each other's social media posts.

Then three years ago, I did a TEDx Talk. After the talks, I was standing in front of the stage and look up, seeing Geoffrey walking straight for me. I was surprised and happy to see him - a familiar, friendly face on a big day. Turns out, he saw one of my social media posts about my talk and came to see me. I felt special. We chatted for so long that we were the last people in the theater that day.

A couple weeks later, we got together for coffee. We spent more than four hours sitting in the cafe in the US Bank lobby, talking about life and travels and all the things that have been happening since our time together on the board. As we were standing on the corner outside saying goodbye for the night, Geoffrey mentioned that he was tired, because his day didn't start the way he planned. When he was leaving to catch the bus to work that morning, there was a woman crying on the street. She asked him for help - she was newly evicted and needed to get to her children, about a 15-minute drive away. So Geoffrey grabbed his car keys and drove her to her children, stopping at an ATM along the way to get money for bus tickets so they could get to family in Iowa. Because of this, Geoffrey got to work late and it threw his day off.

I stood there in shock - from all my years doing disaster relief work, I knew that kind of compassion and generosity were rare. I told him how wonderful it was that he helped her, and that I always try to help people on the street when they ask. He agreed, pulling a fistful of gift cards out of his wallet. He said he keeps these gift cards on-hand to give to homeless people instead of cash, so they could buy meals or get around on public transit. I'm a woman who loves words, but in that moment I was speechless. I knew that this was someone special and important. And that he may just be the person I could build a life with.

Now, after 12 years of friendship and three years of love, we're making it official. Team Bergmann and Team Helgeson are becoming one on June 17th! Say hello to the Bergesons!