Camp Van Vac Romance and Engagement
September 2001. Back in 1988, Patrick was 13 years old and I was 11. Both families
were visiting Van Vac for their annual family vacation. (A tradition that
started with my grandparents before there was even electricity available at
Van Vac!) We met at the main dock one day and became friends. Before our
two-week stay was over, we were "boyfriend and girlfriend."
Due to
unforeseen circumstances, my family was not able to come back. But Patrick
and I remained friends through letters and occasional long-distance phone
calls. His family lived in Iowa, and mine lived in
Illinois.
Although we often talked about it, we were never able to see each
other -- until the
summer of 1997. Patrick and his family had since moved to
Minnesota. I took a week off from work and drove up for a
visit.
The anticipation of seeing each other was almost too much to handle.
It was so exciting! After almost 10 years, we were finally going to see
each other again. We had a wonderful week together, and sparks flew. From
there we had a long-distance relationship for about a year. I then
moved to Minnesota. Patrick was in school at the time. When he graduated, he moved back to St. Paul; I did too.
Then, this summer his family was planning their annual trip to Van Vac, and
the whole family was planning to attend. How exciting! On the way up to
camp, Patrick proposed. It was absolutely fabulous.
Camp Van Vac is not
only a place where many times we found ourselves -- we also found each other.
