A tale as old as time, a modern fairytale put together by an everyday member of the Iowa State community.

Jan. 14 is a day that Cara Szymansky, a graduate from River Falls, will never forget.

Her then-boyfriend, Joel Lynch, a graduate assistant here at Iowa State, had what some would say a fairytale engagement.

Up until a friend’s wedding, the two had no chance of becoming close; however, Lynch, the best man and Szymansky, a bridesmaid, soon got to know each other better. 

Soon enough, a year had gone by and their relationship showed no signs of ending anytime soon.

“She thought at the time of the wedding I wasn’t into her, but I definitely was,” Joel said.

Joel’s sister, Leah Lynch, a senior majoring world language and cultures was also at the wedding.

“They match each other, which is good. It’s cute,” she said.

Because Szymansky’s favorite movie was Beauty and the Beast, she forever had wanted to own the main character, Belle’s, dress, an aspiration that Lynch was aware of.

He knew he was going to incorporate the dress somehow into the proposal, but he hadn’t yet figured out how.

At first he thought he could get away with buying one, but then decided that was too easy. The next thought he had was that he could make the dress himself.

“I knew pretty early on that that is what I was going to do,” Joel said.

Lynch started the dress in October by buying the sewing machine and the fabric. It was a lot of trial and error. He spent most of the time making the skirt and the panel, while the corset was finished sometime during Winter Break.

What left to be finished was done not more than an hour before his future wife arrived.

“He’s very thoughtful, he always comes up with these grand plans for gifts for Christmas and we’re always like, ‘How did you come up with that?’ You don’t expect it,” Leah said.

The only other factor left to decide was the location, which Lynch decided to be Parks Library.

Lynch’s family was extremely helpful throughout the entire process. They provided him with the space he needed to make the dress. His sister also did a lot to help out, as she’s the one who set up the dress before they got to the location of the proposal.

Librarians staff were also in on Lynch’s plans. Monica Gillen, communications specialist and Brenda Currier, a library associate were also a big help in making Szymansky’s dream come true.

“It was kind of like, ‘How do we make this work in the best possible way?’ When someone proposes, it’s a really important question, and we were all thinking [of how to] make it work,” Gillen said.   

Gillen had asked Lynch to stop by before so they could take a walk and see where he wanted the exact location to be.

To the north, just adjacent to the door, there’s an office that lets in to the Periodical Room. The room was cleared out and the dress was placed carefully into it.

“They ended up having complete privacy. It turned out beautifully and I was so glad,” Currier said.

Three university students also had a hand in helping with the proposal. The students — all library staff — helped Currier by completing typical, everyday duties such as covering the circulation desk and conducting rounds. The four made the perfect team.

The team helped by moving the tables and chairs our of the area to give Lynch and Szymansky some more space to work with. Trashcans were also removed to provide the couple with a more aesthetically-pleasing view.

“I just wanted it to be the way he had envisioned it,” Currier said.

All of the planning had finally paid off, and the weekend of was among them. Lynch and Szymansky work with a long distance relationship, which means they have to travel every other weekend to see one another. Fortunately enough, it was her weekend to drive Lynch in Ames.

On Friday, Jan. 13, 2017 the duo found themselves doing their normal routine — the same day Lynch would be finishing up a dress that would make both of their dreams come true.

“It turned out really, really nice. It was actually really well constructed,” Lynch’s sister, Leah said.

As Saturday came around, the two relaxed. Later that evening, they went out for dinner, where they’d be celebrating their one year anniversary together.

The bride-to-be had stated her intentions of going to the library to look for books, and Lynch asked her to wait until after dinner so they could go together. Throughout their anniversary dinner, Lynch’s sister and the four other library staff worked to make the perfect engagement location.

The two finished up with dinner and headed to Parks. In an attempt to stall, Lynch walked Szymansky throughout the library while his sister finished up the preparations. After recieving the planned text, everything began to fall into place.It was time.

As Lynch opened the doors, Szymansky was completely starstruck. She tried on the dress so meticulously crafted by Lynch, and then they danced as Celine Dion’s “Beauty and The Beast” played throughout the corridors of the Periodical Room.

“It was just beautiful. It was very romantic and beautiful. Of course he brought his own music and the dress that they made,” Currier said.

Szymansky’s answer was yes, and an unofficial date was set for March of 2018. 

“It doesn’t happen every day, and now the Periodical Room is a part of their happily ever after,” Gillen said.