Jim and Helen
When the Guy Next Door meets the Girl Next Door… The Love Story of Jim and Helen
Jim is your classic All-American man’s man from the Midwest. He has a good career, an outgoing personality, and fun hobbies. When he came into the office to meet Jennifer, the Matchmaker, she knew how solid of a guy he was. He oozed stability- which let’s face it, most women are looking for! Jim had joined One on One Matchmaking and went on 4 dates. When Jennifer noticed things weren’t totally meshing well with his matches, she decided to switch things up and put him at an Eight at Eight table in 2012. That’s where the magic happened and he met his perfect type- the girl next door.
Why did you decide to join a dating service?
I had tried online dating sites and felt the online world of dating was pretty challenging. After years of this, I decided to try something new and call in the pros.
During the online dating process, I felt the only way to get a women to respond to my profile, I had to present myself in the absolute best possible light and potentially as something more than I really was. Then after meeting and dating people I was matched with, I felt they were not true to what they portrayed in their profiles either. It was kind of a big shallow sham!
What was it like working with Matchmakers?
Working with Jennifer at One on One was great! I interviewed two other matchmaking companies before I decided to work with Jennifer.
With the other companies, I just felt like “fresh meat” for them to feed to their female prospects. I think their only questions were 1) Are you employed? 2) Do you own a car and 3) You don’t still live with your parents, do you?
Jennifer asked me to come to the office for a sit-down conversation. She said, “Jim, after we talk, if I don’t think I could set you up with at least 5 good quality matches, I won’t take your money.” That meant a lot to me. Jennifer and I met for over two hours! She asked me quite a few probing questions, but in hindsight, they were all important for her to understand who I was and what would be a good match for me. After that conversation, I was sold! I signed up that day.
I’m going to admit, working with One on One Matchmaking was not a cheap investment, but after meeting my wife, I realize I would have paid a million dollars to meet her – It was well worth it!
What did you enjoy most about the process?
After going on a date, Jennifer and I talked afterward about how it went. I felt like I got personalized service.
What was your first impression of your partner?
My wife and I actually met at an 8 at 8 dinner. She was sitting across the table from me and we didn’t get to talk much over dinner that night without shouting across the table. She had the most beautiful blue eyes I had ever seen! She was a great conversationalist and I knew I wanted to get to know her better.
How did you propose?
It was Christmas Eve. We were getting ready to go to two different church services and I asked if we could open at least one present before we left for the evening. She let me open a small box (I don’t even remember what it was…) and I gave her a stocking that was hung by the fireplace. In the toe of the stocking was a small box with her mother’s engagement ring in it. I asked her to marry me that night and explained that I wanted to be engaged before going to church so we could tell everyone. She said yes!