High school sweethearts still going strong after nearly 2 decades

When Ashley and Brad Evans first met when they were 14 years old, they did not know they were meeting their future spouses. The two met at freshman orientation at Sherwood Christian Academy, a private school in Albany, Georgia, in 1997 after a prompting by their mothers.

Their moms met each other through Brad Evans’ little sister, who took dance at the studio where Ashley Evans’ mom worked, and she wanted to introduce the two because Ashley Evans was switching from public to private school for high school. At their freshman orientation for Sherwood, Brad and Ashley Evans’ first conversation was brief.

“Of course, I turned bright red because I thought he was so cute, and he did the same,” Ashley Evans said. “We both said our, ‘Hi’ and went our separate ways.”

A few weeks later, however, Brad Evans asked Ashley on a first date.

“He had a friend of his at carpool shout across the way at me, ‘Hey, will you go to homecoming with Brad?’ And I said, ‘Well, I think he needs to ask me himself,’” Ashley Evans said. “So then he shouts across carpool, ‘Hey will you go to homecoming with me?’”

From that point forward, the pair started hanging out more and talking at lunch. It didn’t take long to realize they were meant to be together, Ashley Evans said.

“It was, for me, love at first sight, and I kind of immediately was infatuated and just really enjoyed being with him,” she said. “We really seemed to hit it off and became friends really quickly.”

Brad Evans realized they would be together forever early on in their relationship as well, and said a 1999 trip to Summer Jam, a church youth camp in Panama City Beach, solidified those feelings.

“We had a blast, but Ashley became ill with sun poisoning,” he said. “I knew at that point that she was the one I wanted to be there for through the good and the bad forever, and would do anything I could for her to make any situation we face better.”

Because their faith was an important part of their lives, Ashley Evans said it helped them become comfortable and confident in their relationship early on.

“We had both always kind of prayed that the Lord would send us somebody that was our perfect match and somebody that he made for us,” she said. “So I think we both kind of knew very soon.”

As freshmen in college, the pair took a day trip to Mexico Beach, Florida, where they laid on the beach all day, and Brad Evans eventually wrote “Will you marry me?” with a ring in the sand.

“He put the ring down in the sand, and told me to look,” Ashley Evans said. “And when he told me to look, it had gotten buried, so we’re digging around [for the ring]. We finally found it, and it was a good day for the two of us. … It’s something we’ll always remember — digging through the sand for the ring.”

Both knew it would be a long engagement, Ashley Evans said, and they remained engaged for a few years before getting married in December 2004. After that, they were almost immediately ready to start a family. It took longer than expected, Ashley Evans said, but on Easter Sunday two years into their marriage, they found out they were pregnant.

“Having kids to share our love with was always a dream of ours,” Brad Evans said. “In 2006, God blessed us with a healthy son, Brayden. He is a wonderful son, and we feel blessed to have the opportunity to raise him.”

Having Brayden is something that has further strengthened their relationship, Ashley Evans said, and helped them continue to grow.

“It’s interesting to see the different way that you view your life partner when they’re a dad now or they’re a mom now,” she said. “It really warmed my heart to see Brad in that dad role instead of just my husband or my boyfriend or fiancé or whatever.” 

“I am truly blessed to be able to have a lifelong partner who I have grown up with. We have had so many memories together these 19 years,” Brad Evans said. “Our love for each other has evolved from friends, to sweethearts, to best friends, and to lifelong partners.”

Being together since they were early teenagers means they have plenty of memories to look back on, and Ashley Evans said she looks forward to talking with Brayden about how they met and grew in their relationship as well as individuals and in their faith. 

“It’s so neat to look back and see pictures of us in high school and to be able to show those to Brayden, too and say, ‘Look at us when we were kids. Now this doesn’t mean you’ll marry the first person you date,’” Ashley Evans said.