By Anna Reinert, Social Media Intern
For most couples, the moment when one proposes marriage to the other is tender, intimate, and often sheltered from the world. And for a brief moment, that's exactly how Rod and Amanda felt despite the screams, cheers, and cell phones of about 100 of their closest Fredonia friends gathered around them! That was when Rod got down on one knee.
Meet Rod and Amanda! Rod is a fifth year senior majoring in Business Administration with a concentration in Music Industry. Amanda is a senior with a major in Childhood Inclusive Education and concentration in Middle School Extension Spanish. High school sweethearts and college lovers, they are Fredonia’s newly engaged couple!
Rod and Amanda grew up only five minutes away from each other in a town called Brentwood, Long Island. They met in their high school marching band, where Rod was the section leader of base woodwinds and Amanda was the captain of color guard. They would order Chinese food to their high school and eat it in the music practice rooms, where he eventually asked her out in December of 2012. Their first date was at the movies, where they saw “Breaking Dawn Part 2.” “It was the most memorable first kiss I’ve ever had,” said Rod.
On Aug. 30, Rod got down on one knee at Activities Night in front of a crowd of people, while performing “A Serenade to A Girl” with his music fraternity Phi Mu Alpha. Rod decided to propose at Activities Night two weeks prior with the help of Phi Mu Alpha and Spectrum. Amanda’s sorority, Sigma Gamma Phi, was included in the planning only 30 minutes before. He wanted this special moment to be super memorable with all of their friends together. Amanda was called up on stage and she was just as surprised as the crowd around her when all eyes were on them. “Is this real?” she kept saying to herself. The excitement around the couple was a sight to see! Everyone in front of the stage was screaming and people were running from all over Dods Grove to come capture this beautiful moment. Despite the chaos around them, the moment was, indeed, tender, intimate, and sheltered. “At that point everyone was out of the picture,” Rod confessed.
After this school year, Rod plans to audition for his B.A. in Jazz Studies which will take up one or two more years at Fredonia, and Amanda is applying to different programs for grad school. They plan on having a big wedding in Long Island to celebrate with their families.
