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Caroline and Mario met through their great love of politics and community activism as members of Cape Fear Indivisible. After being friends for years, they connected on a deeper level while waiting in an hour long line for a food truck at Dirtbag Ales (who hasn't?) Months later, Caroline had to ask Mario to go to the movies with her to move things along. Being in the middle of his first campaign for City Council didn't make for ideal first date conditions, but somehow he found the time to make it.

Mario and Caroline spent their first year of dating traveling all over the United States and attending every concert they could before Mario proposed to her in their favorite city, Las Vegas, at the When We Were Young music festival during one of her favorite love songs. They recently adopted a baby goldendoodle, Olive, to join their 15 year-old cat, Bella.