She Said "Yes" on Live TV | Southern Illinois Engagement

The pair first met when they were teenagers. Matt played basketball for West Frankfort, Johnston City and Herrin. He also made friends with basketball players in Marion, which is where Evie is from.

First Church of God (in Marion) used to have a program called "Midnight Basketball" on Friday nights for the youth. It was open to girls and boys and you didn't have to play basketball to attend. There were other things for the youth to do. It was a fun and active way of keeping the kids out of trouble.

Evie would go, and that's where mutual friends introduced her to Matt. The two were friendly and over the years a little flirty, but nothing came of it.

Fast forward to April of 2014. Both had traveled over the years and lived pretty far away from southern Illinois, but both just happened to be living back home at the same time. This time they’re in their 30's.

At that time, Evie needed to upgrade her phone, and Matt just so happened to be working at Verizon. They decided it would be a good idea to catch up. They met up about a week or two later and began hanging out in public for a while. The relationship grew, and they became a full blown couple later that summer.

Matt proposed on January 1 of 2017 while Evie was at work. Evie is a journalist for WSIL TV 3 (an ABC affiliate). At the time, she was filling in anchoring the morning newscast by herself on New Year’s Day. At the end of the show, Matt walked out, got on one knee and asked Evie to marry him, LIVE on TV. Surprised, shocked, speechless and half-crying, Evie got the word “YES!” out.

Now they are hoping for a fall wedding outdoors and by the water. They have chosen to have their wedding at Egyptian Hills Resort.

Matt and Evie are 11 months apart, and both of their birthdays fall in September. Matt’s is on the 18th, and Evie’s is on the 30th. Something else unique is that Matt's middle name is Evie's last name, so she's considering hyphenating so it will look the same.

Also, Matt had been an atheist since they first met as teenagers (Evie didn't know that at the time), but since they've been together, he has become a believer in Jesus Christ, and now they run the music ministry together in their church. Evie's love for God and Matt led to a complete lifestyle change. Evie has learned how to love and be open because of Matt.

They look forward to their big day. They just have to lock in a date!

Photographer: Jenn Fortune of  J Fortune Photography