Dayton & Hallie's Engagement - Flash Mob Proposal at Cannon Beach

Now that the cooler, slower pace of Fall has set in I am finally finding some time to do one of the things I love the most (next to dance, that is) - reflect and write. During what has been nothing less than a truly bizarre and at times difficult year due to COVID-19, this business has once again brought bright moments of hope and love into view. And one of those highlights this year was without a doubt Dayton's proposal to Hallie.

When Dayton contacted me in June 2020 about a flash mob, he wasn't alone. I had the largest surge of flash mob inquires that I'd ever seen that month, right in the middle of the pandemic. I was flabbergasted! I was thinking...aren't flash mobs the OPPOSITE of what we should be doing right now, with the virus being extremely prevalent? To the first inquiry I flat out said no. Then another one came in...then another. And it got my wheels turning. It was clear to me that with venues closing and new government regulations in place, people were trying to find new, alternative ways to celebrate their special moments. And having a flash mob occur happened to be one of them.

Then I asked myself: What IF we did it outside? And wore masks? And socially distanced? Would dancers be up for participating in this way and would a customer still want to move forward with their vision with all these new regulations in place? It was all new, uncharted territory. Turns out, Dayton did. He had originally planned on proposing to Hallie in Portugal. He had spent an incredible amount of time planning an elaborate proposal and had invested a lot of money putting the whole thing together, only to have it all crumble down around him last minute due to the pandemic. He was heartbroken, but determined to move forward with his proposal none the less. He knew what he wanted - to sing a very special, personal song to her with dancers backing him up before he'd get down on one knee and ask her to be his wife.

August 15th turned out to be one of the hottest days of the year at the coast. The beach was packed, but the weather was epic. We ended up surprising Hallie not only with a flash mob and proposal, but with many of her friends on location as dancers. I'll let the photos and video below tell the rest of the story, but I'll end with this last note: If this year has taught us anything, it is to be resilient and think outside the box. The outcome of this proposal is the great product of that.

 

Dayton & Hallie's Proposal Video

 

(Photos by Lindsay Blair Photography)