Dominique Bouchard, 33, caught the eye of Kolter Bouchard, 33, on their first day of college.

Kolter’s profession: Co-Founder and Executive Director of Symal Creative Inc. and content creator

Dominique’s profession: Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Symal Creative Inc. and content creator

When they met: 2009

When did they get married: 2014

How they met: Kolter and Dominique met in a creative writing class their first week of college. Kolter said he noticed Dominique right away.

“I saw it in class and I was like, ‘God, I need a lot of this,'” he said. “Every week, I tried to stay closer to her.”

Kolter eventually asked Dominique out on a study date in his dorm via Facebook Messenger, during which they shared their first kiss.

“Fifteen years later, we have a four-and-a-half-year-old daughter,” he said.

When he knew: “I don’t necessarily know if we had designs on a long-term relationship,” Kolter said. “I was captivated by her. I’m still captivated by her, and my mind wasn’t six months away. Six minutes passed. Six hours passed.”

“It was definitely lust at first sight and I think it was probably love at fourth or fifth sight,” he added.

Kolter also said that when he realized he wanted to constantly work to be better for Dominique, he knew their bond was something special.

What he loves about his relationship: Kolter said he’s grateful for how his relationship with Dominique has grown, especially after they’ve gone through life changes like their daughter, the pandemic and Kolter being diagnosed with stage 2 Hodgkin’s lymphoma during a few months. He is now in remission, but the cancer has changed his perspective on his relationship.

“I think we’re uniquely aware of the gratitude we have for each other and the gratitude we have for ourselves as a unit,” Kolter said.

“My wife makes my life better and I know I make my wife’s life better,” he added. “It’s an incredible amount of work, but it’s work we choose to do.”

His advice for those who haven’t found it yet: Kolter said it’s important to find someone you’re willing to learn to love well through life’s changes.

“My wife and I are not the people we were when we were 18, and if we still were, it would be scary,” Kolter explained. “We were lucky because we grew to grow with each other and promote our growth in each other.”

He added that prioritizing individual development even in a relationship is also important because no one can be everything to their partner.