It was a rainy Wednesday afternoon in October 2024. Jaxson Eisenbarth ‘27 walked Ellie Seberger ‘26 to the St. Ambrose University grotto, ready to execute a plan he’d been quietly preparing for weeks, a ring box tucked in his back pocket.
Eisenbarth was nervous. Seberger was suspicious.
“I just have a feeling that he’s going to propose today,” she recalled messaging a friend earlier in the day.
By the time they arrived at the grotto, Seberger was joking about a proposal.
“As a joke, I patted his pockets, and I accidentally felt the ring box,” she recalled.
Eisenbarth laughed, “I purposely put it in my back pocket so that she wouldn’t see it.”
As Seberger realized what was happening, a classmate emerged from her hiding spot, camera in hand, to capture this life-changing moment for the couple. Seberger, of course, said yes.
Though the couple didn’t meet at SAU, it’s fitting that their proposal happened at this spot on campus. Their relationship is grounded in faith, community, and a shared campus life that has shaped them individually and together.
“A huge reason I wanted to do it at the grotto was that faith is so important to us,” Eisenbarth said. “That landmark, there’s a statue of Mary, but then there’s also the chapel in the back, and all these places felt like staples of our relationship.”
From hometown to campus life
Their relationship began before college.
Seberger recalls meeting Eisenbarth when his family came to dinner after his father became principal at a Catholic school her family attended. At the time, she said, the connection didn’t immediately click.
“We did not hit it off right away,” she said with a laugh.
Their relationship began to take shape later through involvement in their parish. Seberger led a Kairos retreat, which Eisenbarth attended, and the two later served as retreat leaders together. These experiences deepened their connection and established faith as a central part of their relationship.
“That process of being leaders together was really what made us spend more time together,” Seberger said.
By the time they arrived at college, their relationship was already built on shared values, but St. Ambrose, they say, gave them the space to grow into adulthood, both individually and as a couple.
Though they didn’t initially attend St. Ambrose together — Seberger attended the University of Northern Iowa for a semester before transferring — Eisenbarth said the transition to campus life marked an important shift.
“College is where you really start becoming your own person,” he said. “And we were able to do that here – separately, but also together.”
Now, more than three years into their relationship, Seberger says their time at St. Ambrose has helped them move from a high school relationship into a partnership shaped by independence and responsibility.
Faith and leadership at the center
Being at St. Ambrose has given them opportunities to grow both as individuals and as a couple – especially through campus ministry, they said.
“To have our faith, which is so integral to our lives, be something that we can be involved in together. That’s been great for our relationship,” Seberger said. “We get to go on a service trip this spring break together, which I’m really excited about.”
Eisenbarth agreed, adding that they’ve been intentional about maintaining individuality.
“Something that was big for us was making sure that we still maintained our own identities, where Jaxson wasn’t Ellie and Ellie wasn’t Jaxson,” he said. “The things we wanted to be involved in just all happened to be like, the same thing.”
Seberger described faith as “the lens” through which she loves others.
“I think our faith has been a form of true intimacy with each other,” she said.
Preparing for what’s next
As they look toward life after St. Ambrose, both Seberger and Eisenbarth say the university has helped prepare them not only for marriage, but for their future careers and lives beyond campus.
Seberger says her coursework and leadership roles offered practical experiences she expects to carry into the professional world. From her studies in public relations and communication to her involvement in residence life, admissions, and student government, she says St. Ambrose allowed her to build skills she knows she will use well beyond graduation.
“I’ve been really impressed by how applicable my classes have been,” Seberger said. “It doesn’t feel like I’m just taking classes to take classes. It feels like I’m actually being prepared for what comes next.”
Eisenbarth says his experiences as an accounting and sales major, combined with his involvement in campus ministry, admissions, and residence life, have helped shape his goals and values as he prepares to enter the workforce.
“I truly believe that St. Ambrose is kind of like a working ground to grow into who we are meant to be,” Eisenbarth said.
While their relationship has been an important part of their college journey, both said St. Ambrose has encouraged them to grow as individuals – professionally and personally – while also giving them the space to grow together.
Eisenbarth says understanding his purpose has been central to that growth.
“Know your why,” he said. “Why are you in a relationship? Why are you in that specific major? Once you know the why, that will guide you into the future.”
For Seberger and Eisenbarth, that sense of purpose – shaped by faith and community – continues to be visible across campus, from the roles they hold today to the careers and lives they are preparing to build after graduation. And it all traces back to a place that became far more than a campus.
“I think the community here has been the most impactful for us,” Eisenbarth explained.
“This has kind of become our home,” Seberger said.
The couple plans to marry on campus in June 2026.
