Husband surprises wife with reenactment of airport proposal 25 years later

A Texas man surprised his wife on their 25th anniversary with the help of Southwest Airlines.

Last Friday, the airline tweeted a heartwarming story about Kyle Friedel, who wanted to recreate his sweet proposal to his wife Staci, which took place in 1995. According to the thread, Kyle gave a rose to every passenger on his flight to hand to his then-girlfriend, who was waiting for him at the gate.

Though Kyle came up with the idea, it was merely a coincidence that shooting a commercial in Dallas with the ad agency that he worked for would help him bring it to life.

“I was looking for something romantic and...and I didn’t think I could do it,” Kyle tells Yahoo Lifestyle. “The production company was like ‘Yeah, we can help you do that and you gotta do it with Southwest Airlines...no other airline is gonna pull that off.’ So we changed flights and they helped me get the flowers, and everything.”

Staci said she was taken off guard by the strangers handing her roses, but it didn’t take long for her to figure out what was coming next. Kyle was the last person to come off of the plane and he got on one knee, and proposed.

The moment was unique and memorable, Staci said, but unnecessary. “I’m not really that kind of person that does romantic stuff like that, or wants romantic stuff like that. I’m a little bit more kind of a down-to- Earth kind of person. So, of course I was thrilled because I wanted to marry him, but I didn’t really need the big to-do — that’s more Kyle’s style,” Staci tells Yahoo Lifestyle.

Right before the couple’s 25th anniversary on February 11, Kyle decided to recreate his marriage proposal before him and Staci flew Southwest to visit her sister in Austin.

According to Kyle, his wife never suspected a thing. “We started the day by arguing over making the bed, which is kind of funny and misleading because I was kinda laughing to myself thinking ‘oh man, this is great, she’s not gonna suspect a thing,’” he recalled.

Kyle told Staci that he was running late and would meet her at the airport later than planned. While she was going through security, Southwest arranged for Kyle to meet an incoming flight on the jet bridge. There, Kyle handed flowers to arriving passengers to hand to Staci, who was waiting at the gate for her departure flight.

“What do you say to 25 more years?” Kyle asked Staci, while on bended knee. “I say yes, of course!” she answered.

Southwest caught the special moment in pictures and videos that they shared on Twitter.

Staci said she never expected the event, as the couple had already celebrated their anniversary in Europe.

“What’s meaningful to me is that he took the time and effort to do it...he’s very considerate and sweet and that’s what I appreciate,” she said.

In a statement to Yahoo Lifestyle, Southwest said that they were happy to be a part of the special surprise.

“At Southwest Airlines, Customers are always our top priority,” the statement read. “We enjoy the Heart of Travel, and it’s always special for us when we can be a part of such a great surprise. We’re proud to foster a culture that makes these fond memorable moments possible, but we’re even more proud to employ people with a Heart for Service and going above and beyond. Our Employees truly enjoyed being a part of this wonderful couple’s great journey, and we wish them a happy 25th anniversary.”

With many swooning online, the couple agreed there is more to marriage than grand gestures. “We’ve had a lot of ups and downs, and a lot difficult times and hard work. So it’s never about the roses, it was just us remembering something we did a long time ago,” says Kyle.

Staci agreed, telling Yahoo Lifestyle, “Some of the women were like, ‘you’re so lucky, you’re so lucky,’...I feel lucky for being born where I was, when I was and who I am...but I would not say luck is what is keeping our marriage together, it was a lot of work. It still is.”

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