A calm body of water reflecting the blue sky and scattered clouds, with dry grass and shrubs along the shoreline and a mountain in the distance.

Community - Place - Space

A woman and a man having a conversation indoors, both holding drinks, with the woman holding a teal-colored tumbler and the man holding a bottle of beer. The woman has red hair and is wearing a blue top, while the man has dark hair and is wearing a black t-shirt with a graphic design.

We first met in 2010 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where a few beers and Ian’s pizzas sparked a friendship that quickly grew into something more.

In 2015 we moved to Seattle for Ian’s graduate program and eventually Veronica’s undergraduate program at University of Washington and we quickly fell in love with the wild beauty of the Pacific Northwest. Surfing, hiking, and long drives out to the coast—especially past Lake Crescent—shaped our vision of the life we wanted together.

Through the challenges of COVID and Ian’s (now cleared) cancer, we leaned on three things that continue to guide us: community, place, and space. In 2022, while on a beach in Mexico, we took the leap and rented a home in Port Angeles. A month later we left Seattle behind and began the life we’d been dreaming of.

A couple embracing on a wooden dock by the water, with a chain-link fence behind them and a clear blue sky.

A smiling man and woman taking a selfie on a beach with the ocean and a rock formation in the background.

Today, we’ve settled into our first home on the traditional land of the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, in Port Angeles, Washington, where Veronica works as an Academic Advisor at Peninsula College and Ian splits his time between creative projects and local work. We’ve built a life full of friends, a big garden, chickens, and secret spots for foraging in the forest.

Sunset over a beach with driftwood, rocky shoreline, and forested cliffs in the distance.

A woman with long brown hair and a woman with a beard and black cap smiling, the woman is on the man's shoulders, surrounded by green plants and trees, outdoors.