Shirley was looking for love, but knew that she wouldn’t be compatible with anyone other than a country man. She owns her own farm and was really not interested in living anywhere else.
She decided that FarmersOnly would be her best bet at finding the right man who would appreciate and share farm life with her, and before long she came across Mark.
On November 9, 2019, for their first official date Mark drove 140 miles to meet her. From the moment he got out of his pickup, Shirley says she just knew he was the man she was meant to be with.
After he picked her up, they drove another 90 miles to their dinner destination. She recalls, “We talked and talked and talked some more!”
Mark says that he loved her lifestyle and fell in love with her that day . He even proposed that night!
“He’s the real deal!” Shirley gushes. “[He’s an] honest, hard-working family man.”
Even though Covid-19 threw off their original plans, Mark and Shirley were determined to become husband and wife.
“Getting married during a pandemic can be somewhat trying,” Shirley shares. “We finally managed to get a marriage license at the courthouse in the town where I live. There were no florist shops in my town that had any roses for a bouquet!”
They were able to locate one flower shop in a nearby town who could deliver Shirley’s bouquet of roses and the boutonniere.
It was a small, quickly coordinated gathering, and most of the guests remained in their vehicles to share in the celebration from a safe distance.
At sunset on April 17, 2020, Mark and Shirley said “I do” in Mark’s front yard in front of an old wagon. While they had hoped for a church ceremony, they made the best out of a tough situation and proved that love will always find a way.
Without the help of FarmersOnly, Shirley believes they never would have met. Her advice is to “sign up, be honest, use a recent photo, [and] magic still happens! You never know until you try.”