Nurse and Vet Get Engaged at Miami's Vizcaya Museum & Gardens

Meeting while working at a local college, Marci and Dulce instantly clicked and became friends. After hanging out together for quite some time, the pair realized their connection was meant for more and gave a relationship a try.

“I remember going on a trip to Tennessee just as friends and thinking to myself, ‘she is absolutely perfect, she is paradise and home all in one,’” recalls Marci. “I knew then I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her.”

“I knew Marci was ‘the one’ the moment I could no longer stop thinking about her,” shares Dulce. “Every time we hung out I couldn't help but realize she had all of what I wanted and had been looking for. Without searching for ‘love,’ little did I know it was right in front of me. Marci and I connected on a much deeper level. She is my best friend, my partner, and my world all at once.”

The couple spend their lives helping others. Dulce is a nurse and Marci is a multi-tour veteran who now works in security with a side hustle in photography. Marci's photography laid the groundwork for her proposal when she teamed up with photographer Laura Memory get her involved in capturing photos of the proposal.

Working together, the plan was for Laura to recruit the couple for a fake styled shoot so they would be all dressed up without arousing any proposal suspicion from Dulce. After a lengthy six months of coordinating details, the plans were put into motion as Marci and Dulce got ready and met Laura at Miami’s Vizcaya Museum and Gardens. Taking photos throughout the grounds, once the couple reached the gazebo – a planned tactic so that no one could walk in the background of the proposal – it was go time.

Knowing she wanted to create a custom ring for Dulce, Marci selected a petite, handcrafted band with a platinum setting and a beautiful pear-shaped diamond. Marci could not fit the ring box in her pocket without it showing in the photos, so Laura held on to it during the day. Upon entering the gazebo, Laura positioned the couple back-to-back. As she touched up Dulce’s hair, she slipped the ring to Marci. When Laura asked the two of them to turn around and face each other, Dulce found Marci down on one knee.

“The most memorable part for me would be seeing the initial shock in her face,” shares Marci. “I was so concerned that she knew, but once she turned I knew she was in shock and so happy.”