Our Story

We met in the Yale Medical Symphony Orchestra. She was a Ph.D. student in Microbiology who had played the double bass since childhood, and had transported it with her 3,000 miles from her hometown of Seattle to the east coast. He was an anesthesiologist who no longer worked at Yale, but joined to rekindle a love for violin and classical music that was deferred since finishing medical school, even when that meant driving an hour each week from Hartford to New Haven for rehearsal.

In the orchestra, the first violin and bass sections are arranged facing each other on opposite sides of the stage, which was perfect for each to discretely check out the other, especially when the conductor was delivering a particularly loquacious monologue. One thing led to another, and between a shared love of music, outdoor activities, and reading, they hit it off immediately. Not even the threat of cross-country skiing was able to deter warm weather-loving Richard, who has relished learning this new hobby that has brought them even closer together.

It was at a positive-sense RNA virus conference that Richard, in a particularly positive mood, decided to pop the question. True to RuthMabel’s character, he chose to propose at the top of windy, rainy Torc Mountain, among the green hills of the Kerry Way in Killarney, Ireland. We are so excited for our friends and family to join us in the city that is the birthplace for both of us, and her hometown—SEATTLE.