Most Valentine cards have red or pink hearts on them, but my cousin Kevin and his wife Jenny should have orange hearts on theirs. Why? Because of an orange UT hat and the “Isaac Syndrome.”

Did you just imagine Isaac wearing his Biblical clothes and an orange UT Hat? I did.

Actually, Kevin was the one wearing the orange UT hat. His parents are Wayne and Sharon Roach from my article, “Reel Love.”

It was December 16, 1996. Kevin and 3 of his friends were vacationing in Key West. Since it was their last day there, they decided to watch the sunrise over the ocean one last time. And while they were sitting on the beach, they fell asleep.

Then along came Jenny.

Jenny and her 3 friends that is. It was their first day there and they too were out to watch the sunrise. They took a picture of themselves and behind them, asleep on the beach, is Kevin and his friends. You can see that in the picture.

One of Jenny’s friends noticed Kevin’s UT hat. They went over and began talking to them. Jenny said she was surprised at Kevin’s last name. “Roach? Like the bug?”

Once they got past their names, they discovered that they all had one very important thing in common. They were from the great state of Tennessee. As for Kevin and Jenny, they were from East Tennessee. He was from Luttrell and she was originally from Church Hill. At that time, Jenny had moved to Nashville. Even though they had grown up within 80 miles of each other, they meet on a beach 1000 miles away from home.

The new group of friends spent the rest of the day together. They played volleyball on the beach and walked around downtown. Then they stopped at an oyster bar to eat. When Jenny left the table for a few minutes, one of her girlfriends told Kevin how Jenny was available since she had just broken up with her boyfriend.

Kevin and Jenny both had both experienced the “Isaac Syndrome,” but hadn’t said anything about it. Needless to say, their friends noticed the obvious attraction between them.

And at the end of the day, they all exchanged phone numbers, but Jenny didn’t talk to Kevin again until Christmas Eve, 8 days later. Before she left her office in Nashville that night, she called him. She asked if he wanted to meet her for dinner since she would be passing through Knoxville on her way to Church Hill. He readily agreed.

Kevin and his parents traditionally spent a quiet Christmas Eve with his grandparents. When he first told his mother Sharon his plans, she wasn’t too excited about him going away for a while that evening. But being smart, she realized there was something special between Kevin and this girl.
They met up and it just clicked. This was obviously way past attraction. Then Jenny went to
Kevin’s for a New Year’s party on his houseboat at Hickory Star. From that point on, they were together.

They became engaged in October 1998 and married in 1999. In a few years they were blessed with their son Keaton. Among his many talents, Keaton is an awesome singer. He sang at the opening ceremony for the Union County Heritage Festival last fall.

And there is a little irony here. Remember Jenny being surprised at Kevin’s last name? Her maiden name is Christian. When Kevin’s father Wayne introduces Jenny to people, he likes to add, “She used to be a Christian.”

“Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would be utterly be contemned.” Song of Solomon 8:7 (KJV)