Colton Campbell is marrying Sierra Trujillo because, “she is a nerd.” Before he knew Sierra well, he thought of her as the beautiful captain of the high-school cheer team. She was his best friend’s older sister. After he spent more time with her, he came to an epiphany, “I had always thought that she was way cooler than she really is,” he jokes. But on a serious note, he loves her because, “I have never been more attracted to someone on an intellectual level. She is amazing to talk to.”
After dating for five years, Colton knows Sierra well. Her passions are: sports and books. (Sierra is currently the sports editor for the Sun Advocate.) When the subject of marriage came up in their conversations, Sierra joked that if Colton’s proposal involved their faces broadcast on the JumboTron of a stadium, she would say no. That ruled out a proposal at a sporting event or involving Sierra’s favorite team, the San Francisco Giants. With sports out of the running, he started thinking about a proposal involving Sierra’s other obsession- books.
Sierra is not a casual reader. She always packs half the clothes she needs when heading out on a trip because she knows that she’ll need room in her suitcase for the books she buys. She has a tattoo on the inside of her wrist proclaiming that she is a “bibliophile,” a person who collects and has a great love of books.
While thinking about Sierra’s enchantment with books, Colton wanted to create an unforgettable experience that demonstrates how much he adores her. It wasn’t like he had just met her yesterday. The relationship has stood the test of living long distances apart from each other for five years.
Sierra and Colton are from the same home town, Clovis, Ca. Though they were friends in high school, they didn’t begin dating until they lived in different towns. Sierra lived in Los Angeles while she earned her bachelor’s degree. Colton lived in Clovis. Then Sierra moved to Price to begin her career as a newspaper writer, while Colton earned his degree from Fresno State. “It has been a Skype relationship,” Sierra said with a laugh. They survived by talking every night and traveling to see each other-nearly every month.
Graduating from college was a step that Colton wanted to make before proposing. As he looked at the calendar, he didn’t wait too long after graduation. Sierra would be coming to his commencement, he would ask her the day after. His arrangements for the perfect engagement took a great deal of thought and planning.
One of their favorite things to do as a couple is to go to the Barnes and Noble bookstore to browse (maybe for hours) together. So, Colton decided to propose at a book store, but just any bookstore did not seem special enough. He found the perfect spot, “The Last Bookstore,” in downtown Los Angeles. It is a book/art store. It sells new and used books with creative and remarkable displays. One difficulty was finding an excuse to get her to a store four hours away from Clovis. To take Sierra to Los Angeles, Colton suggested a trip to Universal Studios to celebrate graduation. He invited Sierra’s brother, Nick, and Jessica, Nick’s girlfriend, along for assistance.
The ring needed to be in something special. Colton found a crafter on Etsy that makes hollowed out books. He ordered, “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.” The page below the hole would be meaningfully open to the chapter titled, “The Unbreakable Vow.” But how does someone get a book into a bookstore? Jessica was willing to smuggle it into the store in her purse.
Because the store is in downtown LA, security looks through customer’s bags as they come into the store. Jessica was able to get in without Sierra noticing her “contraband.” Once they were in the store, Colton tried to cover his incredible nervousness. He wanted to propose in the store’s famous display on the second level, a tunnel made entirely out of books. In no hurry, Sierra was relishing every bit of the store. Colton kept asking her to go upstairs to take a picture in the tunnel.
Finally, he enticed her to tunnel. After secretly extracting the special book from Jessica’s bag, Colton took Sierra into the tunnel and showed her the inscription written inside the cover, “There are not enough words to explain how much I love you in this book or any other, but these four will have to do… “Will you marry me?”
Since there were not any JumboTrons present, Sierra accepted his proposal. They are thrilled to begin their new lives together.
Unfortunately for Price, Sierra will be moving to San Diego this summer so that Colton can start law school at California Western, where he has been awarded a full-tuition scholarship. Her time working for the Sun Advocate has given Trujllo a love of community journalism. She will continue her career there. They’re ready to turn a new page in their relationship in person (without Skype).
Bridal Focus
Bridal