Family Beginnings

ABOUT ALLISON

I grew up in Overland Park, KS with my mom (Shelley), dad (Dale), and sister (Angela). Our house was always full of animals who are considered members of the family – when I left for college, there was a dog (Tipper) and three cats (Fluffy, George, and Pocahontas). If I don’t say it, my parents will – all of the cats belong to either my sister or me. Tipper is the only pet they claim as their own (or the only pet entering our house at their desire). However, my parents care for all of the pets in their home as if they wanted them there! I graduated from Lenoir-Rhyne College (which is about to become Lenoir-Rhyne University) in Hickory, NC in 2003 with a degree in music education. I have taught in 3 places over the past 5 years – Caruthers Elementary in KCK, Oak Grove Middle (in Oak Grove, MO of all places!) and my most recent position, Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic School in Shawnee, KS.

 

ABOUT KENNY

Kenny grew up in Lexington, MO with his mom (Dorothy), dad (Fred), younger brother (Mark), and younger sister (Kristin). They had pets, but they were always outside (and often died in the highway that runs in front of their house). His house was not in the “city” of Lexington but rather on the outskirts, so there was always plenty of room to run around. Kenny’s dad is the oldest of 5 boys, and Kenny is the firstborn of his generation of Friedrichs. Kenny graduated from Central Missouri State University (which is now called University of Central Missouri) in Warrensburg, MO in 1999 with a degree in agricultural business. When I met Kenny, he was working as a loan officer at Blue Ridge Bank and Trust in Blue Springs. He left that job in March 2005 and just celebrated his 3-year anniversary with Ryan Lawn and Tree. He is a turf manager for Ryan and provides services to customers in Lenexa, Overland Park, and Leawood. He applies fertilizers, puts down seed, and recommends care for the lawns of his customers. He thoroughly enjoys his work and looks forward to many years with Ryan.

HOW WE BECAME A FAMILY OF TWO

Kenny and I, as crazy as it sounds, met through E-Harmony.com, an online dating service. Kenny was the first and only person I ever actually “met”, and neither one of us remembers much about the first date because we were both so nervous. But, E-Harmony was right – we are a great match and compliment each others’ personalities. It’s amazing to think that we spent most of lives just an hour apart, and to know that without E-Harmony, we would have (most likely) never met. God brought us both to where we needed to be at exactly the right time to find one another. We got engaged on March 17^th, 2004 (yes, I remember the date) and were married at Kenny’s family’s church in Wellington, MO on October 16^th, 2004. Our wedding is something I’ll always remember with great joy – one of my favorite college music professors presided over the ceremony, and his wife, another of my favorite music professors, played the organ. Tori wrote and sang a song during the ceremony, college friends blessed us with their musical gifts, and we were surrounded by family and close friends as we committed our lives to each other before God. It was a beautiful day that ended in an apple orchard where we ate delcious BBQ and corn (grown by Kenny’s family), and danced and laughed and visited with friends, some who had come many miles to celebrate with us. It was an incredible day where I married the love of my life, and I’d like to think we love each other more today than we did when we exchanged vows more than three years ago.