From Life-Saving Sacrifices to Reunited High School Sweethearts, These 8 Real-Life Love Stories Will Make You Believe in the Power of Valentine's Day

Mar. 15, 2025

Heather Nguyen and Philip Cho during their December 2024 engagement celebration; Ashleigh Mann and Quentin Brunson during their Oct. 10, 2023, wedding day.Photo:Joe Marte; Felisha Carrasco and Christian Galvan

Joe Marte; Felisha Carrasco and Christian Galvan

Love has a way of surprising us when we least expect it.For some, it begins with a chance encounter — a fleeting moment that turns into something extraordinary, like embarking on a 15-hour flight with a kind stranger–turned–future companion. For others, it’s as simple as a handwritten love letter or as enduring as a romance several years (or decades!) in the making, proving that true love can find us in the most unexpected ways and at the most serendipitous times.In the spirit ofValentine’s Day, let’s revisit some of the most romantic love stories of everyday people that have tugged at our heartstrings.

Love has a way of surprising us when we least expect it.

For some, it begins with a chance encounter — a fleeting moment that turns into something extraordinary, like embarking on a 15-hour flight with a kind stranger–turned–future companion. For others, it’s as simple as a handwritten love letter or as enduring as a romance several years (or decades!) in the making, proving that true love can find us in the most unexpected ways and at the most serendipitous times.

In the spirit ofValentine’s Day, let’s revisit some of the most romantic love stories of everyday people that have tugged at our heartstrings.

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A Winter Wonderland Proposal

Joe Marte

For Heather Nguyen, a simple romantic date turned into the surprise of a lifetime under the dazzling lights ofRockefeller Center’s iconic Christmas tree.

On Dec. 6, 2024, Nguyen’s longtime boyfriend, Philip Cho, pulled off a breathtaking winter wonderland engagement that his girlfriend of six years would never forget. To accomplish this, he reserved The Rink at Rockefeller Center for what Nguyen believed would be just another date. Unbeknownst to her, Cho had spent $1,650 to have the rink to themselves for five minutes so that he could pop the question under the center’s towering Norway spruce.

AsTaylor Swift’s “Enchanted” began to play, 27 of the couple’s closest friends and family held up a giant “Will You Marry Me?” sign for the grand reveal. “I lost it when I found out,” recalled Nguyen, whose loved ones flew in from South Carolina to witness the special proposal — which took Cho two months to plan and save for.

She added, “I don’t think he even gets to the ‘marry me’ part before I scream from my diaphragm a huge ‘YESSS!!’ My whole heart feels like it’s bursting and the room feels like it’s raining and exploding all at the same time.”

The lovebirds told PEOPLE they’re planning “a huge, epic Vietnamese and Korean modern wedding ceremony and reception in South Carolina.”

Read their full story here.

02of 08Finding Love — and a New Kidney — OnlineFrom left: Rafael Dìaz and Reid Alexander.Courtesy Reid Alexander and Rafael DìazA man got his happily ever after twice over when he met his soulmate — who was also a perfect match for the kidney transplant he needed — on Tinder.“Expect the unexpected,” Reid Alexander told PEOPLE in September 2021. “I never would’ve thought that I would move across the country and meet the love of my life, and then the love of my life would also be a perfect match, and I would get a kidney.““It was meant to be,” Alexander’s husband, Rafael Dìaz, added.Though Alexander, who lives withAlport syndrome(a rare genetic disorder that affects the kidneys, ears and eyes), was hesitant to let Dìaz donate his kidney, Dìaz was determined. “I was very sure that I [could] do it,” said Dìaz, who was already registered as an organ donor at the time. “I just said, ‘I want to. You are someone that I want, that I love, so I can do it for you.’ “Read their full story here.

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Finding Love — and a New Kidney — Online

From left: Rafael Dìaz and Reid Alexander.Courtesy Reid Alexander and Rafael Dìaz

Courtesy Reid Alexander and Rafael Dìaz

A man got his happily ever after twice over when he met his soulmate — who was also a perfect match for the kidney transplant he needed — on Tinder.

“Expect the unexpected,” Reid Alexander told PEOPLE in September 2021. “I never would’ve thought that I would move across the country and meet the love of my life, and then the love of my life would also be a perfect match, and I would get a kidney.”

“It was meant to be,” Alexander’s husband, Rafael Dìaz, added.

Though Alexander, who lives withAlport syndrome(a rare genetic disorder that affects the kidneys, ears and eyes), was hesitant to let Dìaz donate his kidney, Dìaz was determined. “I was very sure that I [could] do it,” said Dìaz, who was already registered as an organ donor at the time. “I just said, ‘I want to. You are someone that I want, that I love, so I can do it for you.’ "

03of 08

The Matchmaker Pooch

When TikToker Adri Pendleton was trying to fly her 15-year-old border collie, Nelly, back home with her to California from Amsterdam, she wasn’t expecting to find love.

After her six-year relationship ended in late 2023, Pendleton found herself facing a difficult situation when no airline would allow Nelly — who had epilepsy and a heart murmur — to fly in the cabin. Turning to social media for help, she was met with the kindness of a stranger: a German pilot named Niklas Stoeterau, who offered to fly the pair as his “plus one and a half” on a discounted private flight.

The arrangement didn’t happen overnight, as the two texted for nearly two months before going through with it in person. Before they knew it, they spent the next 15 hours en route to the United States getting to know each other. “We could talk about the most random stuff, and it just [felt] easy,” recalled Stoeterau, who even made nice with the normally shy Nelly.

“A couple of days after the flight, I said, ‘If you keep this up, I’m going to invite you to California and take you on a date,” Pendleton shared with PEOPLE of Stoeterau, who later booked a flight to meet her and her family in March 2024.

Though Nelly only lived for a month in California before passing away, there’s no denying the matchmaker pup’s part in bringing the couple together, with Pendleton dotingly remembering Nelly as “the ultimate wingman.”

04of 08"It’s Wonderful Not to Be Lonely"Florence Harvey and Fred Paul at their wedding in August 2021.Moss ImagingSeveral decades after losing contact, Florence Harvey, of Caledon, Ontario, decided to call her high school boyfriend, Frederick Paul, around Valentine’s Day in 2020.Paul’s wife, Helen, had died in November 2019, two years after Harvey lost her husband, Len, in November 2017, and she wanted to offer some support.“The first year after you lose your mate, it’s a very, very lonely year. Every holiday is a lonely time,” Harvey told PEOPLE in January 2021. “I knew that Fred was probably going through that, and I thought, ‘Well, I’m lonely, it’s Valentine’s, he’s probably lonely also. I’ll say hello.’ And that’s it.” But it was just the beginning of their rekindled love.“You’d think we’d been married for 60 years to each other — that’s the way we feel,” said Paul, who married Harvey in August 2021 in front of 30 loved ones at Norval United Church in Georgetown, Ontario. “We just love being together,” she said. “It’s wonderful not to be lonely and to have someone to share everything with.“Read their full story here.

04of 08

“It’s Wonderful Not to Be Lonely”

Florence Harvey and Fred Paul at their wedding in August 2021.Moss Imaging

Several decades after losing contact, Florence Harvey, of Caledon, Ontario, decided to call her high school boyfriend, Frederick Paul, around Valentine’s Day in 2020.

Paul’s wife, Helen, had died in November 2019, two years after Harvey lost her husband, Len, in November 2017, and she wanted to offer some support.

“The first year after you lose your mate, it’s a very, very lonely year. Every holiday is a lonely time,” Harvey told PEOPLE in January 2021. “I knew that Fred was probably going through that, and I thought, ‘Well, I’m lonely, it’s Valentine’s, he’s probably lonely also. I’ll say hello.’ And that’s it.” But it was just the beginning of their rekindled love.

“You’d think we’d been married for 60 years to each other — that’s the way we feel,” said Paul, who married Harvey in August 2021 in front of 30 loved ones at Norval United Church in Georgetown, Ontario. “We just love being together,” she said. “It’s wonderful not to be lonely and to have someone to share everything with.”

05of 08

A Surprise Proposal with Adele

Ashleigh Mann and Quentin Brunson on their wedding day on Oct. 10, 2023.Felisha Carrasco and Christian Galvan

Felisha Carrasco and Christian Galvan

For Ashleigh Mann and Quentin Brunson,Adele’s music isn’t just something to sing along to — it’s the soundtrack to their love story.

After 10 years together, Brunson decided it was time to take the next step in their relationship. In 2021, hesecretly arranged to have Mann led, blindfolded, onto Adele’s stageduring herone-night-only CBS concert special. Brunson used the occasion to pop the question to Mann as Adele serenaded them with “Make You Feel My Love,” which Mann now “cannot hear that song without crying,” she told PEOPLE in 2022.

“I literally thought that we would just go to the courthouse one day,” Mann recalled of the engagement, never imagining the proposal of a lifetime. “Everything is just always meant to be.”

06of 08

The Power of Online Education

Nadine and Ed Hallisy.courtesy Southern New Hampshire University

In the spring of 2019, Ed and Nadine Hallisy were just two fellow students taking virtual classes at Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester, N.H. Little did they know they’d someday get married.

Ed, from Cleveland, and Nadine, from Santa Clarita, Calif., quickly hit it off during an international business course, flirting over a class discussion board before taking their romance over the phone with calls, text messages and FaceTimes.

07of 08

Sealed with a Letter

Ashley Paré and Kyle Hall; Kyle Hall’s letter to Ashley Paré.SaffordRose Photography; Courtesy of Ashley Paré

SaffordRose Photography; Courtesy of Ashley Paré

Ashley Paré always treasured letters, calling them “something you can keep forever” — but she never imagined Kyle Hall would take that sentiment to heart.

After first connecting on Facebook Dating in late 2022, the couple became virtually inseparable after their first date. Two months later, Hall decided to revive the lost art Paré cherished so much, surprising her in her kitchen with a heartfelt letter asking her to be his girlfriend.

“I absolutely bawled my eyes out when I read the letter,” she told PEOPLE in January 2025, recalling the romantic gesture. Two years later, Hall once again presented her with a letter, this time dropping down on one knee. “It was such a full-circle moment,” Paré reflected.

08of 08An Uber SurpriseRachel Chazanovitz and Mark DeSantis on their wedding day on Oct. 2, 2021.Aprilk photography/April ObeyYou never know who you’ll meet during an Uber Pool (now UberX Share) ride — just ask Rachel Chazanovitz and Mark DeSantis.It was the Saturday before Halloween 2017 when the strangers opted to take the ride-share option due to surge pricing in South Boston. “I used Uber Pool a lot because there was a solid chance you wouldn’t even pick anyone up,” Chazanovitz told PEOPLE in October 2021. “So when he was already in the car, I was like, ‘Aw, come on. … It’s going to take so long to get home.’ " Added DeSantis, “I thought the same thing, too. I was so upset when we had to pick her up.’ “But the two struck up a conversation over DeSantis' lack of costume and quickly hit it off. After getting engaged in May 2020, the couple tied the knot in Boston on Oct. 2, 2021, nearly four years after their serendipitous Uber ride. Said Chazanovitz, “I think everyone is in the right place at the right time.“Read their full story here.

08of 08

An Uber Surprise

Rachel Chazanovitz and Mark DeSantis on their wedding day on Oct. 2, 2021.Aprilk photography/April Obey

You never know who you’ll meet during an Uber Pool (now UberX Share) ride — just ask Rachel Chazanovitz and Mark DeSantis.

It was the Saturday before Halloween 2017 when the strangers opted to take the ride-share option due to surge pricing in South Boston. “I used Uber Pool a lot because there was a solid chance you wouldn’t even pick anyone up,” Chazanovitz told PEOPLE in October 2021. “So when he was already in the car, I was like, ‘Aw, come on. … It’s going to take so long to get home.’ " Added DeSantis, “I thought the same thing, too. I was so upset when we had to pick her up.' "

But the two struck up a conversation over DeSantis' lack of costume and quickly hit it off. After getting engaged in May 2020, the couple tied the knot in Boston on Oct. 2, 2021, nearly four years after their serendipitous Uber ride. Said Chazanovitz, “I think everyone is in the right place at the right time.”

source: people.com