Aly Jiwani collaborated with Chicago Tribune "Jumble" puzzle creator David Hoyt to create a perfect marriage proposal for his puzzle-loving girlfriend Rachel Acuna on Sunday.
Jiwani contacted Hoyt six months ago via email to inquire about possibly personalizing the "Jumble" puzzle for his creative proposal and said he was “pretty starstruck” when Hoyt contacted him in January to offer him some options, the Chicago Tribune reported.
The two finally settled on an answer to the clues, “Has a nice ring to it,” the Tribune reported. Jiwani then suggested a cartoon image of the couple on a sailboat with their dog Benji, since they enjoy sailing on Lake Michigan. The final image created by illustrator Jeff Knurek showed Jiwani down on one knee on the boat.
Acuna’s parents, who live in Arizona, knew about Jiwani’s plans and even subscribed to the Chicago Tribune for a year so they wouldn’t miss seeing the proposal April 8 when it was published there and in about 600 other newspapers that normally carry the puzzle, the Tribune reported.
The couple were even able to meet with Hoyt and Knurek for a celebration dinner Sunday after Acuna solved the puzzle and accepted Jiwani’s proposal, the Tribune reported.
Hoyt and Knurek said they are approached often to create proposals but that they were drawn to this particular couple.
Hoyt and Knurek were involved in another 2013 proposal, but in that case the person proposing enlisted Knurek’s help to draw a fake "Jumble" that he printed himself and slipped into his girlfriend’s newspaper.
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