Our story:

Bailey met Jeff at Eldora when she was a first-year ski patroller, and he was already a seasoned patroller. Bailey knew early on that Jeff was pretty cool. His competence and ability to manage stressful situations impressed her; she thought “I could learn something from this guy.” She wasn’t wrong. One day, they saw someone break their collarbone, and Jeff taught Bailey how to splint it. Very cool. The season flew by as they spent the days sharing stories about adventures, talking about their family back in New York, and rescuing people on the mountain. They were totally, totally, totally just friends. No funny business. Two competent First Responders....responding.

When Jeff got his position with the fire department, he resigned from patrolling. Bailey was pretty sad. She thought that she was losing a friend while she continued patrolling. Little did she know that she would be at the Ranch weekly to drink beer and hang out with Ranch Boys. Every winter, The Ranch housed some patrollers for the season. When Bailey would see Jeff she’d get some rosy cheeks, not because she was cold, but because, you could say that, she was excited to see him and spend time.

As Jeff was pressing through Fire Academy, COVID happened. The Academy went remote and Eldora shut down. Everything for Bailey shut down on St. Patty’s day. Jeff and the Ranch boys threw a party to celebrate the season. The boys had spent a decent chunk of time digging out a snowbank to make one big fire pit. It seemed like the whole patrol team came. It was such a great season, with so many great saves and camaraderie. We spent time playing Stump, and enjoyed hanging out with each other around the fire.

If you know anything about Bailey, she wears sandals year round, regardless of temperature. In all realness, it was very cold that evening. Bailey was warming her toes in her jacket sleeves. Apparently that was what Jeff needed to make a move around the fire. Jeff noticed Bailey's struggle and grabbed her feet to warm them up. Bailey melted. There was something special about being taken care of at that moment. As the conversation with everyone came to a lull, and the coals of the fire crackled, Bailey and Jeff zeroed in on catching feelings…

As we all can recognize, catching feelings can be scary in the dating world, especially in your 20’s and already trying to navigate everything else. Bailey decided that it was time to go. She said bye to everyone and Jeff offered to walk Bailey to her car. She had a new-to-her car that was a manual and she only had it for less than a month. Jeff gave Bailey a hug goodbye and she got in her car. At that point Bailey hadn’t quite figured out how to manage feathering the clutch in soft, deep snow, and, at the same time, managing new feelings for a boy. Nervously, she revved high and what would have been a burn out got her stuck in the snow. Everyone should know that all cars are an extension of Jeff, and again, Jeff saw where Bailey needed help and offered to get her car out of the snow bank. They swapped seats and Jeff moved the car. Bailey was on her way home.

Before Bailey got home, her phone dinged from a text. When she got home, she looked at her phone and Jeff was inviting her to come over after patrol tucked in the ski resort for the summer. He wanted her to go on a ski tour with some friends around the Ranch. Of course, she was IN! On the date of the ski tour, it snowed 4”+, a perfect amount for adventure touring. Jeff & Bailey consider that tour their first date, March 19th, 2020. That tour marked the beginning of their adventures.

2020 was a year full of firsts for this young couple. Ski touring, biking, hiking, running (Not* Jeff’s favorite), and they even went on a rafting trip!

They officially became a couple on October 4th. Three years later, Jeff and Bailey agreed to notarize a civil union, and a month after the civil union Jeff asked Bailey to marry him.

This wedding marks 5 years of love between these two best friends.

Let’s celebrate!

Photos