Siraya and Alex~Always and Forever!

I was born in Greenville, South Carolina to Timothy and Dawn Chew.  My parents split when I was four and we moved to Wisconsin.  I lived with my grandparents for  a while and then we moved in with Scott when they got married.  Scott has been an amazing step father.  We fight a lot, but it is out of love (and both of our stubborness).  I have 4 younger brothers.  I love each and every one of them--even if we all bicker sometime. 

I grew up with Ashley as my best friend from kindergarten until high school. We did everything together.  It was her and David that eventually set me up with Alex and I owe them for it!  We started dating as freshman and our lives have not been the same since!

My roomates have also been amazing.  This year has been amazing.  I am so excited for next year as they deal with my "full on wedding mode" as Megan put it.  Robin and Megan even helped make the day even more memorable by taking pictures and video.

I knew I wanted to be a teacher at a very young age.  When Kolton and Max were born I loved to help take care of them.  When they had an "aha" moment from my help, it was one of the most amazing feelings.  The only other love of my life is teaching and I am so glad that Alex chose to combine my love for him and my love for teaching in one, AMAZING day!

After being from a family that has generations of divorce, I have always vowed I will be different.  I have always admired Mark and Katy's marriage. They got married as teens and were also young parents.  It amazes me that they are still so close and are able to manage the way they do.  They over came all the odds and I know that if they can do it, we can!

I was born at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Appleton, WI on January 13, 1988... exactly 100 days after Siraya was born.  I have always lived in Little Chute and I absolutely love it.  I went to LCHS and played Football and CYO basketball.  I met Siraya my freshman year of high school.  I just finished three years at  UW-Madison where I majored in Biochemistry.  I am now an incoming Pharmacy student at Midwestern University in Downers Grove, IL.  I will graduate in March of 2013 with a Pharm.D. and I could not be more excited!  I have worked at Walgreen's Pharmacy for 2 and a half years now and I know that this is what I want to do with my life.  I have been blessed with an awesome family, friends that are genuine and kind, and a woman that amazes me every day.

I was so lucky to have tons of role models growing up.  My grandparents on the Gloudemans side had 18 children and were always an inspiration to me because they were so devoted to their family, their religion, and to each other.  My grandparents on my mom's side, the Vanden Heuvel's side, share the most powerful love I have ever seen and I strive to be like them each and every day.  The passing of my Grandma Anne to cancer inspired me to be a pharmacist because I learned she was on a trial drug for her illness, peaking my interest in medication and helping people.  Her participation in the study helped get the drug approved and it is now used to treat some cancers.  Thats how she lived her life, from being a great nurse, a wonderful mom, and an amazing grandmother, she always helped and always cared.  My grandpa VandenHeuvel is everything I want to be in a person.  His sense of humor is my favorite thing about him, he has an amazing way with making people laugh and feel comfortbale.  Finally, my parents are big role models to me.  They got married as teenagers and were young parents, but they beat the odds against them.  Their undying affection for each other inspires me every single day.  My mom is a saint, plain and simple.  She is the most amazing woman ever and I love her so much.  My dad has always been supportive of me in everything I do, and even though we don't say it much, I know he loves me and would do anything for me. I Love him very much.

All of these role models have shaped me to be who I am.  But, most importantly, I see the characteristics of these people in Siraya.  She inspires me every day to be a better person and motivates me to reach my dream of becoming a pharmacist, believing in me when I want to give up.  She has so much passion for her schoolwork and aspires to be the best teacher ever.  She will make a wonderful teacher and the perfect wife for me.  I love her with everything I have.  She is my hero.  Every day I think I can't love her anymore than I do at that moment, and every day I am wrong.