An Algonquin College graduation ceremony was anything but normal for one young Ottawa woman as she crossed the stage Wednesday morning.
When Janice Martellaci, 22, heard her name called, she expected to get a handshake and her diploma. Little did she know, her boyfriend was waiting in the wings to ask for her hand in marriage.
"Will you let me be there for you when you need someone strong? Will you let me keep you warm when you're cold? Will you let me protect you and keep you safe? Will you let me love you until the day I die? Janice will you marry me?" Jacob Sancartier, 26, asked as he crossed the stage to meet his girlfriend with a ring.
The surprise marriage proposal caught Martellaci completely off-guard. Still, she said "Yes."
"Well I knew I wanted to marry him the first time I saw him. But I can't say that. That's what all women say right? So, I was like 'Oh, I'll just implant it in his head' . . . But I guess he knew too, so it was good," Martellaci told CTV Ottawa after her engagement.
The couple met at a party. They've been together for just over a year.
"We went to the same party and mingled and I mean I just fell in love with her . . . so that's how it happened," said Sancartier.
They're not exactly sure when the wedding will be, but they do know it will be sometime next summer.
With a report from CTV Ottawa's Stefan Keyes
